Nothing is Easy in Konohagakure
by Airotia
Summary: Hinata is forced to marry Shino, but neither of them want to marry the other. A loophole allows her to escape it, but her only chance is to marry the future Hokage, all the while dealing with abuse and gaining confidence in herself. HinataNaruto ShinoKiba
1. Chapter 1

Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure

Hinata Hyuuga truly felt that she had hit her stride. By the help of Shino, Kurenai, and Kiba, she became less shy around others, and was able to pretty much eliminate her stutter. After many attempts at talking with Naruto, she was finally able to have a full conversation with him without passing out. After Neji had found out the truth to his family, as a sort of peace offering towards Hinata, he would help her with the Juken and Byakugan every now and again. Hiashi Hyuuga had, unfortunately, named Hanabi the heir—but, then again, that took the pressure off of Hinata's mind. She was able to relax and just work towards the goal of happiness, instead of working towards the goal of becoming a successful heir to the Hyuuga family.

However, not every story has a happy ending. Because she wouldn't be the heir, after Hanabi became heir, Hinata would either be marked as a Branch member, or she would be married to the heir of another clan. There was only one other clan who had an available male heir that was around her age, available, and ready to be wedded.

And that, of course, was Shino Aburame—one of her best friends—heir to the bug-using Aburame clan.

And, of course, Hinata didn't look far enough into the future to see that coming up. She only lived for the moment—working towards talking to Naruto, training to become a better shinobi, and working towards getting enough courage to ask for medic-nin training.

So, when her father told her to wear 'that' kimono—the one reserved for weddings and other meetings related to marriage—she was, needless to say, shocked. A few maids helped her don the elegant white kimono and put on some very light and subtle (yet, of course, beautiful) makeup. They tied her hair back and clipped it to the back of her head, leaving a few strands of hair to frame her face. She walked very reluctantly to the room where the meeting would be held, not wanting to know who would be behind the door.

She finally arrived at the door, almost exactly at the time she had been told to be there. She took a small breath before opening the door, and nearly passing out in shock. Shibi Aburame and Shino where sitting side-by-side, Shibi across from Hiashi, and an empty spot across from Shino.

"Sit," her father commanded.

"H-hai," Hinata replied, so nervous that her stutter was beginning to show.

"She stutters?" Shibi asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Not usually. It just comes up sometimes," Shino replied.

"Shino! Talk in a more polite form!" his father hissed.

"… Gomen-nasai, father," Shino replied.

"Here is the contact, which I took the liberty of writing personally," Shibi said, his tone so business-like that a shiver went up her back. Even Shino wasn't as cold, as professional as Shibi could be.

Hiashi read the contract, the room becoming so silent and tense that Hinata couldn't help but fidget. "Agreed," Hiashi said after a few, long minutes of reading.

Hiashi slid the contract in front of Hinata, and commanded sternly, "Sign."

"… I… I d-don't…." she began, not sure of how to tell her father no.

"Do you not wish to marry Shino?" Shibi asked, the professional tone giving Hinata goose bumps once again.

"I-I…"

"If I may take the liberty of answering for her, I believe she is saying, 'no'," Shino said calmly.

"Then I'll sign," Hiashi said simply before taking the contract from in front of Hinata and placing it in front of himself. He bit his thumb and immediately pressed his thumb onto the paper. Using the other hand, so he wouldn't get blood on the paper, he slid the contract in front of Shino.

"Shino, will you sign?" Shibi asked, waiting to see what he would do.

Shino nodded before biting his thumb and pressing it onto the paper. Hinata's eyes shot open as she watched him do this, shocked that he was signing.

"Either he wants to marry my daughter or he knows of the loophole," Hiashi grumbled.

"I believe he knows of the loophole, Hyuuga-san," Shibi explained.

"Hai. I know of the loophole. And the loophole states that you must tell Hinata-chan of the loophole now," Shino said coldly, staring at Hiashi (though Hiashi couldn't tell, since Shino's eyes were covered up by his glasses).

Hiashi turned to Hinata and explained, "The loophole is one of the few laws that the Fourth passed before his passing. It is a loophole for young women in clans—if she does not sign, but the one she is to marry does, instead of both parents signing, then the woman may marry someone of a different family if their status is higher than his own."

"B-but Shino-kun is ANBU…" Hinata pointed out.

"True. But I gave Shino a piece of information that he has used to his advantage in the situation," Shibi explained with a small sigh.

"The Hokage will soon be retiring, Hinata-chan," Shino explained.

"So… if I marry whomever becomes the next Hokage, I… won't have to marry Shino-kun?"

"Exactly," Shino confirmed with a nod.

"Ah, yes—but don't forget, you have to become married before the wedding date Aburame-san and I choose," Hiashi pointed out, an evil smirk on his face.

"… We have no need to rush. Besides, one of the top candidates for Hokage is Shino, another top candidate is a woman, another is Hyuuga Neji, and the last one…" Shibi explained, trailing off at the end.

"The other?" Hiashi asked, wondering whom the other could be.

"Is Uzumaki Naruto," Shibi finished.

"So, Hinata only has a one-fourth chance, and even then, it's _him_…" Hiashi concluded. "Very well. We'll allow them to be wedded after the Hokage's inauguration," he said before rising to his feet.

"Gomen, father, but… What do you mean by 'it's _him_'?" Hinata asked, her voice uncharacteristically cold.

"… Hinata, do not speak to me in such a manner, especially not in front of guests," Hiashi answered back, his voice equally cold.

"Hiashi-san, Hinata-chan might give up Naruto if she knew…" Shibi hinted at subtly.

"Yes, but that would be a breach of the law," Hiashi said, automatically throwing the suggestion to the side.

"No one obeys the law. If a penalty were to be given, it would be very light—especially on you, Hiashi-san," Shibi replied.

"Very well—your logic has swayed me. Hinata… Naruto is the one who holds the Kyuubi," Hiashi explained.

Hinata, however, was remained unfazed. "Does it not surprise you, Hinata-chan?" Shibi asked, his curiosity forcing him to wonder why she wasn't surprised—at all.

"It does… somewhat. But it explains why he's such a fast regenerator and why he has immeasurable amounts of chakra. The only thing that surprises me is that Naruto can be so… warm and still have that monster sealed inside of him," Hinata explained.

Shino hid a small smile beneath his collar, smiling at how loyal Hinata was and how much she idealized Naruto—for instance; she never said anything of his idiocy, but only of his loyalty, kindness, and warmth.

Hiashi scoffed lightly before saying, "At any rate, Naruto cannot possibly beat a Hyuuga who has had proper training. Hinata, you shall be wed to Shino Aburame," Hiashi said coldly. "I believe that concludes this meeting," he directed at Shibi, who nodded in turn.

Shibi stood up and gave a low bow, which Hiashi copied at Shibi's exact level to show equality. Shino and Hinata rose almost simultaneously, and Hinata glanced over at Shino, wondering what his motives were.

"We'll talk later," Shino explained before following his father out of the room and then out of the house, leaving Hinata alone in the room with Hiashi.

"Your punishment for speaking out of character and out of place, Hinata, is sparring with Hanabi. Go, change into fighting clothes, and meet me out in the courtyard," Hiashi commanded coldly before walking out of the room.

----

The next day, Hinata woke up and automatically winced. She could feel the pain now—but last night, Hanabi had bruised her and attack her so much that she was numbed. She could see ugly, dark marks everywhere but her face—and her insides especially felt sore. She felt like she had torn some muscles from Hanabi's Juken, but Hanabi had taken care not to hit any organs. After all, if she hit an organ, it could be potentially fatal. Hinata sighed and sat up slowly, knowing already what she had to do. She needed to take a cool bath, put on her baggy, long-sleeved clothing (which was much hotter than she made it look), and put layers of makeup on any area of shown skin that was bruised. The maids were forbidden in helping with any of this, for the more Hinata had to do for herself, the more she felt the pain and the punishment.

The only one who knew was Kurenai—and she had figured it out by herself—so, when they had training and Hinata had 'sparred' (it was more like a fierce beating, really) with Hanabi, Kurenai would go light on giving Hinata work and just give them another 'independent training' day, which meant they could do whatever they wished and Hinata wouldn't have to move as much. Because of this, however, Team 8 had more down time than any other team.

Hinata fixed her bath, applying ice to the swollen areas while the tub was filling up. She took off her clothes and climbed into the tub gingerly, gasping in shock as her body slid beneath the surface of the water. She felt the water begin to numb her body a little, and she laid in the tub for about an hour, doing nothing but thinking, before she finally washed herself slowly and washed her hair. She used the faucet of the tub to help pull herself out of the cold water, her legs shaky underneath the weight of her body.

She climbed over the tub and grabbed a towel, patting her body dry tenderly to avoid any added pain. She wrapped the towel around herself and walked to the sink. She pulled a hair dryer out of the cabinet above the sink, plugged it in, and began to blow dry her hair.

After her hair was completely dry, Hinata put on her clothes and applied the makeup. She feigned stoicism as she walked out of the bathroom, though the pain of walking was immense. She grabbed her (now thinner) coat and put it on, despite the sweltering heat outside. The only one who ever actually _thought _to ask why she wore the coats even in hot weather was Naruto—who stripped down to his black undershirt when it got to hot for his full suit. It somewhat made sense, though, since Kiba and Shino also wore heavy coats—and their jackets were heavier than hers. She had wanted to ask them for a long time why they wore _their_ coats, but that would involved having to tell them her reason.

And, to tell someone, was a taboo.

So, she made her way for their usual training spot. Kiba and Shino were going through extra training together for the upcoming ANBU evaluations—if they didn't pass them, then they'd be demoted to Jonin, and it would be five years before they'd be considered for ANBU again. Hinata was working towards becoming Jonin as well, but the exam had just passed, and she had failed once again. She only wanted to be a Jonin so that she could command a three-man team herself, but Kurenai said that the odds were against her—even if she made it to Jonin and managed to convince her father to let her have a three man team, it would be many yeas before she could find a team that was worth passing and training.

Hinata arrived at the training site, avoiding Shino's gaze for the first part of the meeting. Shino knew that she didn't feel like talking, so he decided he could spar with Kiba and wait a little while. Hinata simply walked around, using the Byakugan to look around the forest. She caught sight of Naruto, working on what had to be a new jutsu, and Hinata decided that no harm would come of visiting Naruto.

She walked through the bushes and around the trees, making her way slowly but surely towards Naruto.

She finally arrived where he was producing a sort of beam of blue chakra from in between his hands. He lost concentration, and the chakra beam dissipated. He cursed loudly, turning around and finally noticing Hinata.

"Oh! Hi, Hina-chan!" Naruto called. Hinata blushed slightly at his nickname for her before walking up to him. "What's new?" he asked, before continuing to work on his new jutsu.

"…" Hinata considered tell him of her father's misdeeds, but decided against it. "Not much, Naruto-kun. Kiba and Shino are sparring together, and Kurenai left us for another independent study course," Hinata admitted. After thinking over it for a moment, she decided on a piece of information from the night before she could, however, tell him.

"Also, did you hear that the Fifth will be retiring soon?" Hinata asked casually, grabbing Naruto's attention quickly.

"Really? Obaa-sama is retiring?" Naruto asked, shocked.

"Hai… There are a lot of candidates for the position of Hokage… I've heard that she even recommended you as one, Naruto-kun," Hinata informed him, excited to see his reaction.

"Yatta!" he cried, jumping into the air and shoving a fist towards the sky. He landed gracefully and threw his arms around Hinata, making her automatically tense up and blush, but she laughed at his reaction all the same. He pulled away just as quickly as he had hugged her, a bright smile on his face.

"We need to celebrate," Hinata suggested. Naruto looked down at his hands, almost as if he was trying to decide between celebrating—which included, of course, ramen—and training. "… You can tell me about the jutsu you're working on as well," she suggested.

Naruto's head shot back up from his hands to Hinata, and he smiled brightly. "Deal!"

A/B: I changed the candidates, and I've also started developing Naruto and Hinata more. I think that this way is better, and that the (re)first chapter is better than the other. –nods- Well, I hope you all enjoyed the new old installment of NEK:D


	2. Chapter 2

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

They sat in Ichiraku's bar, Naruto going on an on about his new jutsu. He really did enjoy talking to Hinata—she was one of the few people that seemed generally interested in what he had to say, and never, _ever_ interrupted him by calling him stupid or dobe.

"And so Ero-sennin said I need to live up to the Flash. And I can't do that without making a real original move, so that's why I'm making it," Naruto finished up before gulping down the last brothy remnants of ramen.

"Ah. What are you going to call it?" Hinata asked curiously.

"I don't know. Ero-sennin and Kakashi-sensei said naming should come after developing it. Do you think that after I make it people will start acknowledging me?"

"Naruto-kun, I believe all the important people have already acknowledged you," Hinata said with a small blush, averting her gaze from Naruto and concentrating on the last piece of pork in her ramen.

Naruto paused, staring at her, dumb folded. "Yeah… I guess you're right. But I still want the villagers to acknowledge my greatness," he said smugly, flashing her a smirk. Hinata giggled at Naruto's cockiness, her hand delicately covering her lips to keep it from turning into a full-blown laugh, even though she knew he wasn't trying to be that funny.

"So, what's going on in your life right now?" Naruto asked before ordering another bowl of ramen, already knowing that Hinata would always let him order a second bowl, even if she didn't order a second one herself. Some days, she didn't eat at all—she would just sit at the counter.

Hinata looked down sadly, still unsure if she should even tell him about it. Naruto could tell something was going on because of this, and he leaned forward. "Hina-chan?"

'_Naruto is the one who holds the Kyuubi…'_

Hinata looked up and checked around the bar. The man who ran Ichiraku's was in the kitchen, cleaning up for the night. Ayame was somewhere else, and there were no other customers. Asking now wouldn't be so bad…

"Naruto-kun, you're the Kyuubi container, aren't you?" she asked calmly, not wanting to sound cold. Any sort of coldness in her voice would give anyone—especially Naruto—the wrong impression.

"I… I… Hina-chan, I…"

"Yes or no?" Hinata asked with a small smile, using the same words he used when he asked her out on a… well, not exactly a date, but close.

"Yeah… I am… But…" he began, attempting to explain.

"Don't explain. I see now. I understand why you strive for recognition. Naruto-kun… I don't think you're the monster. I think they are," she whispered. She stood, offered him a soft smile, and excused herself. She walked out of the bar, leaving a silent Naruto behind her as she went.

Shino stood just outside of the bar, awaiting Hinata's exit. "Are you still the coward you were all those years ago?" Shino asked coldly and smoothly, Hinata now finally aware that Shino had been waiting for her.

"What… what do you mean?"

"I commend you for asking about the Kyuubi container, and for the compliments and reassurance. But, Hinata-chan, you had the perfect opportunity to confess…"

"I… Sh-Shino, why d-do you even care?" Hinata asked, the stutter slipping out once again.

"I want to see you happy, and I myself wish to be happy as well. I, however, have no chance of happiness if you aren't," Shino explained. He walked closer to Hinata. She never would have expected what happened next—he actually touched her shoulder. He never touched anyone, unless it was during a fight. She, taken by surprise and off-guard, winced automatically.

Shino's eyes narrowed. Even if she weren't expecting to be touched, she wouldn't have winced like that. That was a wince of pain, not a squeamish wince.

"Hinata. Take off your jacket," he commanded.

"Oi, Hina-chan! Wait up! Oh…" Naruto called, stopping when he saw Shino and Hinata talking. "I'll just…."

"This isn't finished. We'll talk later," Shino said, a little more comforting than usual. He walked away, leaving Hinata and Naruto alone.

"What was that about? Man, he's weird…" Naruto observed for the thousandth time.

Hinata giggled lightly, and sighed. "Nothing…" she explained.

"What's wrong with you? It… it's not me, I can tell. You… didn't act cold towards me, and you didn't treat me any different. You… really don't care, do you?" Naruto asked, anxiously waiting Hinata's response.

"No, Naruto-kun. I do not. I believe that… that your experience as the container… has made you who you are. The Naruto-kun I…" Hinata began, her resolve to finally tell him that she liked him. Shino had given her that resolve, and she was prepared to do it.

She was interrupted during her confession when Naruto charged at her, grimacing as she fell to the ground unceremoniously. She could feel her bruises and scrapes screaming, the pain rippling through her body.

"Arigatou, Hinata…" he whispered, his face buried against her stomach. Hinata blushed, but she smiled, though she was slightly uncomfortable, and she lifted her arms to embrace Naruto tightly.

"It's okay, Naruto…" she said softly, blushing automatically as she realized that she didn't use any honorifics.

Naruto didn't seem to notice, and Hinata could feel wet, warm tears of happiness, sadness, or relief—perhaps a mix of all three—following onto her stomach. He really did look like a child at the point, and Hinata simply hugged him tightly. After a few minutes of sitting there like that, Hinata finally gathered the courage to kiss the top of his head.

She paused, waiting to see his reaction. He just sniffled, sat upright. He looked down, as if he was embarresed, wondering silently if that was what having a mother felt like, and contemplating where Hinata would get upset if he asked her or not.

"Naruto-kun… I love you," she blurted out, suddenly embarresed that she had used 'love' instead of 'like' and that she hadn't led up to it at all. Naruto's head shot towards her, surprised that she had just said something like that so out of the blue.

She stood up and turned to leave, wanting to run away from the embarrassment of having done what she just did. "Hinata!" he called standing up as well, making Hinata freeze in her tracks.

"H-hai…?" she asked, stuttering slightly.

"Go out with me tomorrow?" he asked nervously, not sure how to really ask her out.

"Sure…" she answered back shyly. "Oh! Training!" he gasped out.

"Skip it. I'll give your excuse," the cool voice of Shino sounded.

"Damn it! Have you been here the entire time?" Naruto yelled.

"I couldn't miss Hinata's confession," Shino explained, as if that gave him an excuse.

----

"Neji, you shall keep watch over Hinata's progress in her relationship with Naruto until her marriage. Understood?" Hiashi asked a kneeling Neji coldly.

"If I may ask, why?" Neji asked.

"… I do not wish her to get to the point of marriage with someone who can possibly become Hokage. Of course, I shall make it worth your while. If Hinata and Naruto do not progress, and she marries Shino Aburame, then I shall arrange for you to marry Tenten Ama. Am I correct in assuming you have affections for her?"

'_Damn it--How'd he find out? Lee? Sensei? Or has he just been observing me…? Wait. That's not possible. I don't show it. It was Lee or sensei. Definitely,' _Neji thought bitterly.

"And if I refuse?"

"Then I shall never arrange for a marriage. It is not uncommon for Branch family members to not be married—more than half of them remain unwedded and have yet to have children," Hiashi explained coldly.

"And if I fail?"

"Then you will be disowned from the clan. You shall be exiled form the clan's house, and yet remain under the control of the clan. You'll enjoy none of the luxury of living here, but you'll continue to suffer the pain of being a Branch member and continue under my, and every other member of the family's, control," Hiashi explained coldly.

"Understood. When should I start?" Neji asked, showing no sign of his anxiety in regards to the punishments.

"Immediately," Hiashi said, dismissing Neji from his study. Who knows when Hinata would finally get over her crippling shyness?

----

Neji walked through the town, searching for Hinata. He had utilized the Byakugan, and the sooner she was found, the better. Neji had determined on his own that, if they were to find out, it would not bode well for them. He was being extremely cautious, working hard towards finding Hinata.

He finally spotted Hinata, Naruto, and Shino, lurking in the shadows, outside of Ichiraku's. Neji was far to far away to be able to hear them—and that was probably the best way to stay—but he could still lip read form afar.

'_Shit. He definitely asked her out… and she replied affirmative. I must destroy their relationship before… before it gets any further. Perhaps there is some piece of information that he does not yet know? Would Hinata have gathered up enough courage, or have even thought to tell him of the wedding arrangements? There is not sure way to tell, unless I confront him face-to-face, and then, of course, Hinata would find out of the plans…'_ Neji mused to himself. _'Perhaps the best way would be to let them grow a little, before ruining them. Perhaps I should ask Hiashi for a favor…'_

Neji walked away, sighing in annoyance as Shino finally revealed himself. _'I cannot do anything at this point. I'll report back to Hiashi…'_

----

"I see. And your plan?"

"My plan is to ask Naruto to inform Hinata of a marriage meeting with her soon-to-be husband. I sincerely doubt that Hinata has told Naruto of her marriage arrangements. She may have gathered enough courage to confess, but I doubt she'll have enough courage to tell Naruto that she's an engaged woman," Neji explained.

"Go on," Hiashi instructed, leaning forward, interested in the way his nephew's mind was working. _'Just like Hizashi. When we were kids, he was an amazing prankster…'_

"I also suggest that you have Hinata plan the wedding—with supervision, of course. After all, if her time is consumed doing something mandatory like that, and cannot possibly include Naruto, then they may not have time to allow their relationship to bloom," Neji continued.

"Agreed. The way this is going, we may as well make a double-wedding," Hiashi said with a smirk.

"Arigatou, Hiashi-sama. I shall continue to work with our plans, then," Neji said, dismissing himself. He stood up, gave a low bow, and exited the room. _'I'm being manipulated. I feel like a damn puppet…'_ Neji thought, his hatred for his uncle growing.

----

"She's skipping training?" Kurenai asked with a frown.

"Hai, Kurenai-sensei. If I may, I think that this is a positive step for Hinata," Shino said, using his extremely odd polite tone of voice.

"How is that a positive step?" Kiba demanded, growling slightly about something that Hinata was apparently being allowed to do, but he wouldn't have ever been.

"… She's on a date with Naruto," Shino explained quietly, not wanting to spread rumors—even if they were true.

"Oh," Kurenai replied, her mouth an 'O'. "Well, if you see her before me, tell her that she's undergoing rigorous training to repay this—and ask Naruto to join us in training. You two can have a day off," Kurenai said with a sigh, waving her hand and using her other hand to massage her temples. _'Perhaps Asuma can give me advice…'_

"… Would you like to have lunch with me?" Shino asked Kiba coolly, the same tone of voice one would ask someone else if they would like a second plate of food.

"… Sure," Kiba finally decided, shocked that Shino had asked him on what felt to be a date. "Any particular place?" Kiba asked casually, not wanting to turn it into a date if it really wasn't one.

"Sushi?" Shino offered.

"Okay," Kiba replied loudly, for he loved eating raw fish and rice. And to have them in one meal—well, that was heaven. Akamaru even barked in agreement, and Shino smiled lightly at the happily reply from the dog.

"… Can Akamaru come, too?" Kiba asked tentatively, for most restaurants didn't allow dogs. In fact, that was the reason Kiba ate outside much of the time.

"We'll order it and eat outside," Shino offered.

Kiba's huge grin was enough of a response for Shino, and Shino simply led Kiba to a small sushi bar, located strangely close to Ichiraku's.

**A/N: No, I didn't make Neji a bad character. I love Neji—and I would never make him evil. I showed his clever side and showed his motives for allowing himself to be manipulated by his evil uncle. I also decided to make Tenten and Neji's relationship harder, and I of course changed Shikamaru to Sakura, which makes it seem even harder for Hinata to get out of her marriage with Shino. The next chapter will be mostly a light, date chapter—but I doubt I'll have a lot of Kurenai/Asuma, but of course, it's there if you pay attention. ;D Kiba and Shino's relationship is also more developing, and Naruto will, of course, start training with Hinata's team.**

**These changes are more than slightly major, and the story may go in a more serious direction. There are quite a few more changes left to make, but I believe that the new way of doing this story is an improvement. I hope you still enjoy it! )**

**Good news! I have internet now! Updates will be coming more and more rapidly, now. And I will start replying to reviews. xP **


	3. Chapter 3

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

The day began well for everyone, even Kiba and Shino, who were still uncertain whether or not the other thought of the 'outing' as a date. They spent half the day, awkwardly glancing at each other, bumping into each other then coughing, and having strained conversation. Akamaru was eyeing this all in disdain, unsure of what to do in order to force the two together.

Finally deciding on a perfect way to force them together, Akamaru deviously snuck behind his master's legs and nudged him towards Shino. Kiba, whose reflexes were only good with some sign of warning, flailed and grabbed onto the nearest thing—Shino. They stood there, in the middle of an open square, Kiba clenched onto Shino like a helpless woman.

Behind the collar, Shino smirked. He wrapped his arm around his waist—lower than he had to—and pulled him up, Kiba blushing all the while. Shino was also blushing a light pink, but it wasn't as obvious behind the tall collar.

"Are… are we agreed that… this is a date?" Shino asked, unsure of how to phrase the question.

"Uh-huh…" Kiba answered dumbly, nodding his head in affirmation.

The people in the square, who had all been watching intently, applauded while Akamaru barked a few times out of pure happiness, feeling the excitement from his master.

"Let's go somewhere quiet," Kiba suggested with a small smile as he noticed that Shino was uncomfortable. Shino nodded in reply and clenched the bag containing the sushi slightly tighter as they made their way through the square.

----

Naruto honestly didn't know where to take Hinata. He thought that the date really should be romantic, but at the same time casual. He was not clever in the romantic department, so in the end he decided on a simple lunch. He wasn't sure if going to Ichiraku's was a good idea, since they had been there so many times before, but he really didn't know of another restaurant that would allow the Kyuubi container to eat in their building. Him stepping inside might send the customers into a riot, after all.

Naruto was immensely relieved when he realized Hinata did not mind that they were eating at Ichiraku's, and also happy that she was content talking about jutsu and missions.

In the middle of her bowl of ramen, Hinata excused herself to the restroom to 'check her makeup', to which Naruto replied that she didn't need any automatically. Hinata giggled lightly and shook her head, saying that she never needed it worse.

She stepped inside the restroom and took off her jacket. She turned on the cold water and ran it over her hand until her hand was numb. She pressed it against her now bare shoulder, which had been throbbing for the past fifteen minutes. The throbbing slightly subsided, and Hinata knew that that was as good as it would get with just a cold hand. She took out her compact full of makeup base that was her light skin tone and began to reapply it around her face, making sure that all signs of any fading bruises were gone. Surprisingly, her father had yet to invent something that she needed to be 'punished' for since her last beating days ago.

Meanwhile, Ichiraku's owner leaned against the counter and smirked. "So, when are you going to ask your friend on a real date?"

"We _are_ on a real date!" Naruto protested.

Ichiraku paused, mulling it over. "Then act like you're on a date, Naruto," he advised with a wink, before walking away to take another customer's order of pork ramen.

When Hinata arrived back at her seat, Naruto stood to pull out her chair for her, only to realize that they were on a barstool. He sat back down in a flowing motion and rubbed the back of his head nervously. Hinata smiled softly at him and slowly ate a bite of noodles.

"Why do you always wear your jacket?" Naruto asked suddenly, startling Hinata, simply out of pure curiosity.

'_Does he know…?'_ Hinata asked herself worriedly, before answering, "I suppose I am self-conscious…" she explained, using her old reasons for wearing the jacket.

"Ah. Yes. I thank you for reminding me, Naruto-kun," Shino said from behind him. He turned to Hinata, who had the look of a deer in the headlights. "Hinata. Take off your jacket," Shino commanded, just as he had the night before.

"Oi! What're you trying to do?" Naruto demanded, swiftly moving in between Hinata and Shino in an offensive manner. Hinata obviously did not want to comply, and Naruto was damned if he was going to let Shino just command _his_ (_did I just call her mine?) _Hinata around.

"Naruto-kun, please, do not make a scene of this. I believe that you will be most interested to find out what lies beneath the jacket," Shino said.

Naruto, taking his statement the wrong way, clenched his hands into fists, beginning with, "Why, you bastard…"

"Stop!" Hinata shouted, shocking everyone. It was rare for Hinata to speak so loudly, and when she did, she meant business. "I… I'll take it off…" she said, finally submitting to Shino's 'request'. "But not here," she said, noting the number of people at Ichiraku's.

The three of them nodded. Shino was evaluating the situation, wondering how hurt Hinata could be if she could hide it; Kiba was deathly silent, unable to fully comprehend what was going on—though he had a good idea; and Naruto, who had no idea what in the world was going on, nor why Shino wanted Hinata to take off her jacket, was extremely anxious, curious, worried, and confused.

They walked behind the ramen bar, questionable looks from the customers. The owner yelled at all of them to stop staring at his most valued customers, and they silently complied, knowing that the owner was loyal to his 'most valued customers', even if it meant losing a little business.

They stood in silence as Hinata unzipped her jacket, telling herself over and over again that it was better that they know. She slipped her jacket off, now not worried about holding back any winces or signs that she was in pain. The jacket fell to the ground, and Naruto and Kiba gaped at what they saw.

The bruises were now a sickly green color, though some still retained the deep purple color. There were no scrapes or scratches, as the Juken did not inflict such wounds. The bruises, however, covered such a large area that Shino and Kiba felt bad for not noticing.

"What is the cause of this?" Shino was the first to speak.

"M-my punishment in-involves Ha-hanabi h-h-hitting me…" Hinata explained.

"So… so that means… that these bruises… are because your father commanded your little sister to beat you?" Naruto asked, his fists back to clenching together.

"H-hai…" Hinata answered back shyly.

"That bastard!" Kiba and Naruto yelled out simultaneously.

"How can he do that to his own _family_?" Naruto demanded heatedly.

"How can her little _sister _do that to her, even if her father tells her to do it?" Kiba continued.

The two of them continued ranting on together, adding parts to each other's sentences and finishing statements or threats. After they let out a good deal of steam by yelling at each other about her father and her predicament, they finally stood in front of her breathing heavily.

"What can we do about it?" Shino asked her, just barely keeping his cool.

"Nothing…" Hinata answered back sadly, yet truthfully.

"Bullshit! There's always _something_ we can do!" Naruto yelled. Kiba nodded in agreement, both their faces set into a similar look of displeasure.

"Th-there really is nothing we can do…" Hinata replied, shaking her head.

"In regards to preventing it, she is right," Shino said slowly, wording his sentences correctly. "But, Naruto, I believe that you have a good friend who is a medical ninja…? Perhaps she may be of assistance. Hinata will, of course, still have to deal with taking the damage, but that does not mean it cannot be healed."

"Yeah! Yeah! Sakura-chan will help! C'mon!" Naruto exclaimed, grabbing Hinata's wrists roughly. Hinata winced, for she had a few bruises on her wrists where Hinata had hurt her during a block.

"Naruto, be more careful!" Kiba yelled at him.

"Oh! Sorry, Hina-chan!" Naruto apologized while rubbing the back of his head and looking down, annoyed that he could not remember to be gentle with someone who is injured.

"Yes, and perhaps we should walk as well…" Shino suggested. "It will not be a hard matter to find Sakura, and it is best that Hinata gets there feeling the least amount of pain as possible, rather than rushing her there and worsening her injuries," Shino explained.

----

The first place they checked, luckily, was where Sakura was. The library, which was on the way to the Hokage tower and the hospital, was so empty on the Saturday afternoon that it was very easy to distinguish Sakura's whispering curses to the silence of the library. After only a minute of quickly explaining the situation, Sakura came rushing towards Hinata, dropping the stack of books onto the table and sitting her down at a 'reserved' (as the librarian jokingly called it) table, and made Hinata, once again, take off her jacket.

Sakura frowned when she saw the state of her arms, and told her to hold still as she healed them. Sakura used the chakra to strengthen the skin underneath the bruises, which was about the best she could really do. They weren't as sore anymore, nor were any parts of her body throbbing. Shino and Kiba were secretly impressed with how long Hinata underwent that pain without saying a word about it, but did not say or show anything on the matter.

Hinata and Sakura talked gently to each other as Sakura worked, for the exercise was a simple one. Kiba, Shino, and Naruto exchanged worried looks from the table opposite them, pretending to read.

Finally, when Sakura finished healing Hinata, Hinata and Sakura walked over to the three of them.

"She'll be fine, and she'll feel minimal pain. She's agreed to come see me after her beatings, and I've agreed to start training her on medical nin training," Sakura explained. Naruto and Kiba offered supportive grins, and Shino nodded in reply. The bruises were now only light blotches, and looked much less worse. If she wanted to, she could simply cover it up with makeup.

"Arigatou, Sakura-san. Thank you for all you've done, and I'm sorry for troubling you," Hinata said, giving Sakura a small bow. This extreme politeness threw Sakura off for a moment, before she frantically waved her hands back and forth.

"Oh, no! Don't worry about it! I'm glad to do this for you. Drop the formal crap, and use chan, okay?" Sakura ordered lightly.

"Hai, Sakura-chan," Hinata said brightly.

"Besides, I'd do anything for Naruto's girlfriend," Sakura teased with a nudge, holding up her pinky to signify girlfriend.

Hinata blushed deeply, while Naruto smiled brightly enough to light up a cave.

----

Training the next day was rough. Not only did Team Eight induct Naruto as a part of their training group, but also Sakura was also inducted in order to overlook Hinata's training, practice her own, patch up the boys after sparring and such, and to work on sparring. Hinata would also spar a little in between her training, just to keep her form and to take a break in between her medic training.

Hinata was, not so surprisingly, good at medical training. She did, after all, had chakra precision as good as Sakura's, though it wasn't as evident because she did not stand out as much as Sakura did. Sakura tested her chakra precision by both having her climb a tree with no hands, and having her to walk on water. She was able to do both without giving it any effort, which amazed Sakura. Even she had trouble walking on water.

Kiba and Shino spent the entire time sparring with each other, now no longer worried about inflicting flesh wounds upon each other, for Sakura could, and would, easily fix them. Naruto spent the vast majority of his time working on his jutsu, which was beginning to look like a chakra whip, and sparring with either Hinata or Sakura. When he sparred with Hinata, he helped her to work on improvising as he could do easily, and when he sparred with Sakura, he'd help her work on her basic strength, which would enhance her chakra-enhanced strength.

Akamaru would switch off with Kiba in sort of a tag team match, leaving breaks in between spars that would last up to forty-five minutes for them all to relax, walk around, and then start back up again. Kurenai oversaw all of them from a tree every now and then, correcting things and offering tips to everyone every now and then.

Hinata made lunch for everybody, including Akamaru and Kurenai. The lunches were so big that Naruto had to help her carry them when he picked her up in the morning, a job that was no longer left up to Kiba. Kiba now, instead, picked only Shino up, and spent the first hour or so of the day with his new boyfriend, while Naruto and Hinata also got some special morning time. Both pairs were moving slowly in regards to physical relations, but they were learning more and more about the other, and falling more and more in love with them as the time wore on.

Often times, after Hinata and Naruto began spending so much time together, Hinata and Naruto both found themselves predicting how the other would react to a statement, or even something they'd say or wonder about. Shino and Kiba already knew each other very well, but were now having deeper conversations, now that Shino was saying more than what was necessary, making comments about his opinions rather than adding facts to a conversation. Kurenai was even getting closer to Asuma, and was actually starting to admit she was dating him, rather than denying it.

Sakura was basically the third wheel in three different relationships, Naruto and Hinata's more than the others. She was still single, and it seemed would remain that way for a long time. Hinata considered asking her if she was lonely, but she could already predict the answer, and besides, Sakura was probably still in love with Sasuke, even though he had been killed years ago.

Neji was watching them from a training area not too far away from Naruto's and the others, making sure that Naruto and Hinata didn't get closer than talking or holding hands. It was hard to tell, because it was purely the state of their mind and their emotions, but Hinata and Naruto were definitely developing a strong bond. Every day, he reported back to Hiashi, and awaited new instructions. Hinata had yet to tell Naruto of the marriage, and it seemed that the marriage had slipped both Shino's and Hinata's minds.

For a long time, the punishments didn't happen. Hinata had almost completely forgotten about them, when one night, Hiashi called her to the training room. Hinata had vastly improved since her last beating, but it wouldn't be evident until she was actually put against Hanabi.

Hinata dressed in her usual training clothes, took a deep breath to prepare herself mentally for the brutal beating, and made her way to the training room in which she knew she'd be beaten, once again, to a pulp.

She walked to the middle of the room, standing opposite Hanabi. Hanabi had a fierce look on her face that plainly said she didn't really want to do it, but she wouldn't hold back. They gave each other a half-hearted bow and both initiated the Byakugan before beginning. Hanabi moved towards Hinata swiftly, flattening out her palms and sending the chakra through to her hands. Hinata stood back, getting into a defensive move automatically as Hanabi charged her. Hanabi swung her arm at Hinata, and Hinata dodged it by a half a centimeter. The chakra, however, still managed to inflict internal damage to her left kidney, bruising it slightly.

Hinata swung back, surprising Hiashi slightly, for his daughter never had the chance to take a swing at Hanabi. Hanabi flung herself backwards, completely avoiding the attack. Hinata waited until she jumped to move closer to Hanabi and pushing her palms forward, sending a surge of chakra at her sister. Her sister, since she had only just landed, was unable to dodge the attack, and fell over.

It was the first time Hinata had been able to hit Hanabi. Neji resisted the urge to smirk, applaud, cheer, or show any signs that he was proud of his cousin. Hiashi's frown became even deeper and more malicious as he raised a hand, signaling to stop the match.

"Finally, it seems that Hinata is able to overcome someone five years younger than herself. Perhaps she can overcome a Branch member, now?" Hiashi asked, before turning to Neji. "Go," he commanded. "And don't hold back."

That fight would have lasted as long as the fight between Hinata and Hanabi, except Neji was the one winning, and Hiashi told him to continue to fight her, even when she was lying on the ground, unable to move.

"But, she—" Neji began to protest.

"Now, Neji," Hiashi commanded, beginning, just barely, the curse seal's effects.

Neji doubled up in pain, tears welling up just behind his eyes. The curse seal's effects stopped just as quickly as they had ended, and Neji was certain he had no choice but to continue to attack Hinata.

Hiashi finally allowed him to stop after Hinata was unconscious.

**A/N: Well, not as much of a light-hearted chapter as I wanted, not at all. xP Oh, well.**

**I have a calendar of when I'm going to be putting out chapters on my stories. If you're interested in seeing it, go to my profile and click my homepage. If you click on the calendar when you get to that page, you'll see the list.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

Sakura had never seen anything so terrible—domestic-wise, leastways. Hinata was unconscious, lying down in the hospital bed, a breathing apparatus attached to her mouth. Her breathing was rather shallow. Sakura, though she knew it was by no means fatal, was extremely anxious. It was quite possible that Hinata suffered from internal damage. She had no proof that it was a member of Hinata's family that did the act, and besides, it wasn't exactly illegal. They were training, and any injuries sustained during training were usually pinned as the injured's fault.

A nurse came back into the room with the internal x-ray, and Sakura hurriedly snatched it away from the worried nurse. Whether Sakura tended to show it or not, she really was officially attached to the girl—she was a sweet person, reserved, and yet, when she did give her opinion, her opinion was always the best of what could be expected of the situation. In good situations, she was always the happiest, and in bad situations, she was a tough rival for Naruto's position of most optimistic. She was always so considerate, which was one way in which she had Naruto beaten—she always made lunch for everyone, including Akamaru and Kurenai, who usually wasn't there. If Kurenai didn't happen to be there, Kiba would silently take the bento from her and tell her that he'd eat it for dinner, because it was so much better than dog food.

Sakura frowned down at the sleeping girl as she thought about such memories. Why would someone, especially a family member, do something so cruel to one of their own? It was tragic, really… Their expectations for the girl's fighting Hyuugan fighting skills were so high that they didn't see all the magnificent qualities she had, despite the fact that she grew up around a very cold family.

Sakura glanced over the internal damage report, giving it a half-hearted smile. It was better than what she had expected, and only her right kidney was even slightly bruised.

'_Perhaps… perhaps whoever did this held back…?'_ Sakura asked herself, knowing full well the power of the Hyuuga family. She shook it off, and put it into a corner of her mind, left to ponder upon later on, when she wasn't working.

She leaned over Hinata's limp body, and quickly pulled over Hinata's shirt. She folded her hands over her midsection, and concentrated her chakra into that area. She put aside the thoughts that she was someone she knew—these thoughts were always put aside, for otherwise Sakura's concentration would fail. She formed a single solitary, extremely tiny thread of chakra with a slightly larger needle-shaped chakra formation connected to this string. The needle, however, was made inside the body, in order for her to get to the kidney without piercing the skin.

The chakra needle, under Sakura's command, pulled the healing chakra through the scratch in the kidney. When that simple act was done, she forced the chakra to dissipate, and pulled back away from the body. She put her shirt back on her, carefully, so as not to wake her up.

"You three—sorry, _four_—can come in now," Sakura announced, automatically correcting herself when she thought of Akamaru. Both Kiba and Akamaru himself hated it when she left him out, which she usually did.

Suddenly, the four of them rushed in, all at once, Kiba and Naruto fighting to be the first in the room. Shino, for he had more common knowledge of hospital protocol, walked in behind them and looked at Hinata.

"Is she well?" he asked, his voice more even than Naruto or Kiba could be able to muster at the moment.

"Yes. She's fine. She just needs her rest—and _will you two be quiet_?" Sakura explained to Shino, before turning around and reprimanding Naruto and Kiba. For some odd reason, they were arguing over whom they should kill to make them atone for what had happened.

"I'm telling you, it was Hanabi! She's the one that Hinata's father always compares her to!" Kiba growled at Naruto.

"No, it was Neji! There's no way someone five years younger than her could have—" Naruto began, but was cut off by Sakura punching him—hard, of course—in the chest. Naruto flew backwards from the intensity of the punch and sat on the ground, massaging his chest.

"I _told_ you two, to shut up! Hinata-chan is resting, and she needs her sleep!" Sakura yelled at Naruto, much louder than he and Kiba were being mere seconds ago.

"Sakura-san, I believe that Hinata-san is now awake," Shino pointed out. Naruto whispered a quick 'thank you' to Shino, for Naruto would still be being yelled at had Shino not pointed out that Hinata was awake.

"Oh! Hinata-chan! Are you okay? Did they wake you up?" Sakura asked, rushing over to her side to check her temperature.

Hinata didn't have the voice or the heart to tell Sakura that it was _her_ yelling that had awoken her, but instead hoarsely whispered, "Water."

Sakura stopped and nodded. "I have to give you ice, instead of water, because water might be too much for you to handle at the moment…" Sakura explained, before leaning out of the doorway. She glanced at a random nurse and told him to get some ice disks for Hinata to drink. The nurse nodded curtly and continued walking, off to (hurriedly) get her the ice.

When she turned back around, Naruto had pulled the chair from the side of the room by the window to the side of Hinata's bed. He grabbed her hand and smiled, nuzzling her hand against his cheek. Sakura found she couldn't stop herself from smiling at the sweet picture. Even Kiba, who had just quarreled with him, was smiling benignly at Naruto and Hinata, Akamaru mirroring his happiness. Sakura was sure that even Shino's icy exterior had melted into a soft smile, smirk, grin, or some other sign of mirth.

"You okay?" Naruto asked, and mentally berated himself for asking such a dumb question—of course she wasn't okay!

Even though she wasn't, not really, she nodded softly and gave him a soft, brave smile. Sakura walked beside them and, though she hated to break the mood, told them that she was extremely bruised, and would still need work.

"What are we going to do about this?" Kiba asked, a frown present on his face. It was clear that they had to do _something_… After all, they couldn't keep on like this, not with the situations getting worse and worse.

"Maybe she can run away!" Naruto suggested, though all to optimistically.

"That won't work," Shino pointed out.

"Why not?" Naruto pointed out.

"Because, according to Hyuuga law, if a member of the Branch family runs away, they'll be forever exiled. If a member of the Main family runs away, they are to become a Branch member, branded with the curse seal, and to be one of the lowest servants possible," Kiba explained sadly, forcing tears from falling out.

"What if they can't take her back? What if she runs away again after becoming a Branch member?" Naruto threw at Shino and Kiba, hoping to have found loopholes.

"They're always able to retrieve their own—the law is on their side, and whether or not the Hokage wants to, she'll have to obey it. As for the other—" Shino began, but was cut off by a sudden outburst from Naruto.

"That's it!" Naruto yelled, before quickly making hand seals and leaving in a puff of smoke.

----

"Hmm…" Tsunade said, thinking over the situation. A pleading Naruto, who was surprisingly on his hands and knees, was behind her, his nose actually firmly pressed upon the ground.

"Get up. It doesn't suit you," she said, flashing him a small smirk. Naruto quickly moved from bowing down on the ground to sitting in a chair next to her desk, anxiously awaiting her response.

"There is a way around it," she finally decided, and Naruto leaned forward intently to listen. "As Hokage, I have more power over ninja than even Hyuuga Hiashi has power over his daughter. I could command him to let her stay at someone's house, but who's…?" Tsunade explained, curiously wondering who it could possibly be. She glanced at Naruto, who sadly shook his head.

"My apartment is only barely big enough for me…" Naruto explained sullenly. Tsunade sighed and continued looking out the window. "Someone her age would be best, preferably female…" Tsunade decided with a sigh.

"Naruto!" Sakura bellowed from the doorway, making both Naruto and Tsunade cringe in shock. She stopped automatically and apologized over and over when she realized it was a serious meeting.

"No, no, Sakura-chan—you have come at a most opportune time. Tell me, you live alone, correct?" Tsunade asked Sakura with a small smile.

"Yes…" Sakura replied, unsure of what was going on.

"How big is your apartment?" Tsunade asked.

Inside Sakura's mind, it clicked. Why Naruto had suddenly left, why Tsunade was asking questions about her apartment… "Yeah!" she exclaimed. "It's big enough for two people! I even have an extra bedroom, and I could use a roommate!" Sakura replied happily.

"Good. Naruto, Sakura, you are dismissed. However, inform Hyuuga Hiashi that he is to meet me at Hinata's hospital room," Tsunade commanded.

They both gave her an enthusiastic salute; a trademark thing the two of them did whenever she told them to do something they actually were eager to do.

----

Hyuuga Hiashi was not happy about being forced by the Hokage to meet him at the hospital. He was nervous—no, those of the Hyuuga family were never _nervous_—he was _anxious­ _about what the meeting would entail.

He finally arrived at the hospital room, room 209 on the Recovery Hall. He stared at the doorknob, as if willing it to open on it's own, and finally reached out and turned the brass handle. Sitting there already in the room were Tsunade, Sakura, and Naruto, along with Hinata who was sitting up against the bed.

"I believe this meeting only concerns Hinata, the Hokage, and myself," he said coldly to Naruto and Sakura. They glanced over at Tsunade, with a 'Do we have to?' sort of look. She nodded, and they both scrambled out of the room. Tsunade stood up and performed a Sound Barrier jutsu, to which Hiashi frowned at.

"Those who act as if they were your children can't be trusted?" Hiashi asked, as if doubting if Naruto and Sakura were trustworthy people at all.

"They can, but their curiosity overrides their trustworthiness, in this situation, at the least. And, anyways, such cruel statements about my daughter and son will not be taken lightly," Tsunade said with a cold glare. This look had enough killer intent behind it to make any man freeze, but Hiashi shook it off, as he was custom to doing.

'"What does this meeting entail, Hokage-sama?" Hiashi asked finally, after a few moments of silence.

"Of the relocation of Hinata's living quarters," Tsunade explained.

"Ah. To where, may I ask?" Hiashi asked, keeping his voice calm, though inside, he was angered at this notion.

"To my daughter's apartment. It is unfit for one of _my_ ninja to be living in a house where 'training' constitutes beatings."

"There is the matter of her upcoming wedding in a year…" Hiashi pointed out with a smirk, glancing over at Hinata for the first time to see her reaction. She was looked down at where her feet were under the covers, refusing to meet either the eyes of the Hokage or her father.

"I know about that. When it does occur, she shall move in with whomever she marries," Tsunade said, careful to say 'whomever', for, at the present, it didn't seem as if her marrying Shino was in concrete.

"I see. Has she yet to tell the Uzumaki boy of the wedding?" Hiashi asked, knowing he had hit a bull's-eye.

"Whether she has or not, is neither none of my business nor none of yours. I do believe this meeting is over, Hyuuga-san," Tsunade retorted cruelly.

"Of course," Hiashi said, giving her the slightest bow before walking out of the room.

"Chichi-ue?" Hinata asked softly from the bed.

Hiashi froze in his tracks and glanced back at the girl underneath the covers.

"I forgive you," she said simply.

He considered not replying and just walking away, but instead he said, "What have I to be forgiven for?" Though it was subtle, Hinata and Tsunade both caught it—his voice broke on the 'for', showing that what he was saying was really just bravado.

----

Hinata's recovery came quickly enough, due to the medical care of Tsunade and Sakura. Tsunade was beginning to consider Hinata a second daughter, as if she was a shyer, less temperamental version of Sakura. This also strengthened when she found out that Sakura had been giving her medic-nin training.

While she was recovering, Naruto, Shino, Kiba and Akamaru (as much as he could) all helped move Hinata's things to Sakura's apartment. Sakura couldn't help, for she was busy with caring for Hinata, but she took excellent care of Hinata and had helped to arrange Hinata's room. The time they all didn't spend with moving or training, they spent with Hinata, keeping her company and lifting her spirits.

Meanwhile, at the Hyuuga compound, the morale of the Branch family was low, for the sweet princess of the Main family was moving away, probably never to return. Neji had been ordered to continue surveying Naruto and Hinata, giving him daily reports on everything they did, especially now since they could see each other whenever they wanted to. Neji spent all of his time spying on the pair, not even able to train, and barely able to eat and sleep.

When Hinata was fully recovered, Sakura showed Hinata her place. Hinata was amazed with the lengths Sakura went to make her room beautiful—her things were arranged just as they were in Hinata's old room, and the entire room now had a scheme that was classic Japanese. The scheme was a simple, yet elegant, white and light brown. Sakura had even bought her a wonderful welcoming present, a bonsai tree and some shears for her to spend her time on.

"It… I…" Hinata began, but couldn't find the words. She settled on "Thank you," and throwing her arms around Sakura's neck, and smiling brightly, tears forming in her eyes.

"It's no problem—really," Sakura replied, quickly giving her a tight hug before pulling away. "Besides, now we have a much better setup for medic-nin training! You'll be spending most of your time with me!" Sakura pointed out.

Hinata nodded happily, wiping away the tears of joy that had just barely escaped her eyes quickly. "I… I'm happy," she finally said with a soft smile.

----

Naruto, Kiba, Shino, and Akamaru all invited themselves to Sakura's apartment. When she firmly told them that she was _not_ going to have a party, the three people (for Akamaru could not very well hold up a present) held up gifts for Hinata.

"Please?" Naruto asked simply. Sakura sighed and glanced back at Hinata, who was looking at the four of them from the hallway.

"Paging Miss Hyuuga-san, a party of four has just arrived at the door. Shall I tell them you're in a meeting, or is it safe to actually receive them?" Sakura asked, using the same tone that people on intercoms used, or perhaps even a secretary.

Hinata giggled and gave a wide wave of her hand. "I suppose they can come in, since they brought presents," then clamped her hands to her mouth, shocked at herself for saying such a 'greedy' thing.

"Yatta!" Naruto cried, not even noticing Hinata's embarrassment. He ran past Sakura, who held the door open. Kiba and Akamaru followed at a similar pace, while Shino walked behind them, gave Sakura a small bow, took off his shoes, and walked inside.

"Shoes!" she yelled at Kiba and Naruto, who both groaned, ran back, took off their shoes, and ran back to Hinata. Naruto glomped her excitedly, happy that she was walking around.

"I've been lonely without you!" he exclaimed, making Hinata blush a deep shade of red. She smiled down at him through the blush and nodded back, putting her arms shyly around his back. Kiba smirked and put his hand on her shoulder and gave her a look that definitely said, "Glad you're back", while Shino stood silently.

As it turned out, Naruto had given her a comb to hold up her hair, which had a fake silk white flower attached to it; Hinata was surprised at how thoughtful the gift was, for it really did match her overly, and would work well with her eyes and contrast to her hair deeply. Kiba had given her a new stuffed dog (her father, in a fit of rage that she wasn't 'mature', threw all her old ones away a while ago); it was soft, extremely fluffy with shiny brown hair and deep black eyes. As soon as she got it, she hugged it tightly and hugged Kiba as well, even allowing Akamaru to stand up and lick her cheek. Shino's present was undoubtedly the most practical—but then again, she was expecting that—it was an extremely large and varied pack of medical supplies, all of which could be enhanced by chakra, and Sakura could show her how to use.

The party was short lived, for Sakura knew Hinata needed her rest (the con of having a doctor as a roommate). On the way out, Naruto had kissed her on the lips quickly, pulled away, and blushed. "I… I know my present was a bit, well… Shino pointed out you probably couldn't wear it a whole lot… I mean, you can't wear it on missions and stuff… But…!" Naruto explained.

Hinata smiled at him, thinking how cute he was when he was awkward (although, she, herself was the same way). She placed a gentle hand on Naruto's cheek, shook her head, and with a light pink blush, kissed him softly on the tip of his nose. "Goodnight, Naruto-kun," she said happily before pulling away and having Sakura slam the door on the boys.

"Really, those three—four!" Sakura said 'sternly', putting her hands on her hips and stomping her foot. Hinata could tell she didn't mean it, though, because she was smiling as they left.

**A/N: Check out my homepage, it has a calendar of when I'll be letting out my chapters**

**Review, pwease?**


	5. Chapter 5

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

Life for the six of them was going smoothly. Team 8 was just starting to get to know Sakura, and she was, in turn, getting to know all of them—especially Hinata. Naruto and Hinata constantly spent time with each other, and always ate every meal together, usually cooked especially by Hinata or ramen paid for by Naruto. Shino and Kiba were also starting to secretly date, though, in the group, it was really no secret. They have yet to, to everyone else's knowledge, done anything beyond a quick peck on the lips, but, then again, doing anything further than that wouldn't be hard to do when you have a dog scrutinizing your every move. Kiba was obviously the seme, while Shino was uke—though Shino would be the one to win in a fight at any given time.

Hinata and Naruto walked together to the usual training place. Sakura had left ahead of them to give a daily report to Tsunade about something she would not discuss with the five of them (Akamaru counts because, somehow, he could tell Kiba). She was talking to Kiba and Shino, who were both standing oddly attentive, instead of their usual casual way. Shino spotted the pair and nudged Kiba, who waved them over hurriedly, though the usual grin was not present.

"I wonder what's going on…?" Hinata asked aloud rhetorically, and Naruto simply shrugged.

"Oi! Sakura-chan! What's going on?" Naruto called as they walked towards the group. Sakura sighed at his impatience and waited for him to be right next to her to continue talking.

"They're going to start the process of choosing the next Hokage, soon," Sakura began. "There are four official candidates—Shino-kun, Naruto-kun, Neji-san, and myself. And, more than likely, they are going to have a point system to determine who will become Hokage. You get points for things like kindness, courageous acts, hard work, completed missions above C-rank, and things like that."

"Why are you a candidate?" Naruto suddenly asked, and Hinata elbowed him—hard—in the ribs.

Sakura's fist clenched, and through gritted teeth, she answered, "Because, no matter how irresponsible Tsunade may seem, she's a good leader, and I'm kind of a young version of her. We're both hardworking, ruthless, and can both make descisions quickly. Besides, we, at least, don't attract attention to ourselves needlessly," she bit back at him, nearly hissing at him with the last comment.

"Ha! Tsunade and you'd both punch holes in stone walls just to make a point!" Naruto threw back, not willing to back down from the argument. From beside Naruto, Hinata chuckled, and soon began to full-out laugh at how silly they sounded.

In response to their questioning looks, she gasped out, "You… both… sound… so… silly!"

"Regardless, this means that we're opponents," Shino pointed out, pushing his glasses up, as a habit, as he said so.

"Yeah. What are you going to do to earn points around each other? I mean, you'll be constantly trying to act better than each other, and…" Kiba pointed out, trailing off at the end as he put his hands behind his head and stared at the sky.

"We'll act the same," Naruto said firmly.

"Of course! What, would I kick Hinata out just because I'm competing with her boyfriend?" Sakura asked, laughing loudly, thinking Kiba's idea was absurd. Naruto and Hinata both blushed, though Hinata's blush was much redder than Naruto's, at the boyfriend comment, but they both chuckled as well. Shino stared ahead, showing no emotion, and while Kiba didn't tilt his head away from the sky, he also smirked, and even Akamaru seemed to smile.

And then there was silence between the six friends. They didn't know what to say, and really, what could they say at that point? Half of them were now competing against one another for the top position of Hokage, and any wrong comments could hurt anybody.

"Ano… Sakura-chan, I think we should… start training…" Hinata began, stuttering slightly because she was nervous about being the first one to speak.

"Yeah! Shino, c'mon, I need to spar with you to get my juices flowing!" Kiba shouted, nudging Shino in the side.

"Yeah, yeah! I'll go and work on my jutsu! It's nearly done, you know!" Naruto exclaimed, before turning to his usual area. Sakura took Hinata gently by the hand and led her away to go underneath their usual spot, the large oak, while Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru walked together to the opposite part of the forest to begin sparring.

----

Lunch was unusually silent. Throughout the meal, Sakura, Naruto, and Shino did not speak to each other, afraid of saying the wrong thing. Kiba, Hinata, and Akamaru constantly exchanged glances, both clearly worried about their friends (and boyfriends). Finally, somewhere about halfway through the meal, Kiba sighed and began to talk.

"Look, I know you all are afraid of saying something stupid, but…" he began, and ended in frustration, unsure of the words to use.

"Don't let it get in the way of your friendship," Hinata offered, shocking Shino and Sakura by speaking, and shocking them even further in not stuttering.

The three of them reflected for a few minutes, and Naruto finally nodded, and replied, "Yeah, yeah… You two are right. We shouldn't worry about it. After all, we all know I'm going to become the Hokage!" Naruto exclaimed with a smirk.

"Yeah right! Who'd give you a single point? All you're good for is a decoy! Just run past the enemies, and they'll wonder why a traffic cone is running away!" Sakura threw back.

"Oh yeah? How's pink any better?" Naruto growled.

"I think what you _both_ wear is silly, for a ninja," Shino said simply, his voice still calm, unlike Sakura and Naruto's.

"Ch! Who'd want an emotionless Hokage?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah! As long as your bugs are fine, you'll let Konoha burn!" Sakura said, ganging up on Shino as well.

The 'argument', which, in truth, had no animosity behind it, lasted the entire part of the meal. At the end of the 'argument', the three of them were acting no different than usual, and were really talking together more, including Shino. The yelling, which usually was an annoyance, was actually music to Hinata, Kiba, and Akamaru's ears, because it meant that they were getting along fine.

Suddenly, from the trees, three ninja with black masks jumped down, surrounding the group as they finished their lunch. Everyone automatically got ready to defend themselves, and Naruto yelled, "What the hell do you want?"

With a _whoosh_, three darts from the trees came down. One hit Hinata, one hit Kiba, and one hit Akamaru. They wobbled and passed out. Naruto swiftly caught Hinata and laid her down, glancing to make sure she was okay. When he saw that she was still breathing, he stood back up and got into a fighting stance.

"What the hell do you bastards want?" Naruto screamed. The ninja made no reply, except for getting into their own fighting stances. Naruto charged the ninja nearest him, simultaneously making five Kage Bunshin. Shino started to fight one of the ninja with taijutsu, not bothering with the bugs—just yet, for he needed to evaluate just how strong the other ninja were. Sakura charged some chakra quickly before fighting the last ninja, though in truth, she only attacked him if she knew she could get away with it unscathed—her medic nin training didn't allow her to make any unnecessary risks with herself, for then who would heal everyone else?

Naruto stood behind his clones, using them to assess their abilities. They had a good level of taijutsu, and once Naruto found this out, he created more clones, and then joined with them to fight. As they fought, he conjured a Rasengan with the help of two of his clones. He had created enough to hold down the ninja, and even chakra reinforced them so that they wouldn't immediately poof away. The clones piled on top of the ninja, burying him in a mass of Narutos. Naruto ran at his clones, the Rasengan extending, and rammed through the clones, all of them exploding in a puff of smoke.

Naruto was, in the least to say, shocked when he realized that the ninja was no longer there. It wasn't possible to perform any seals, as the clones were holding him back from doing anything of the like. It wasn't possible for him to dig, either.

"Oi! They're clones!" Naruto yelled, an epiphany striking him. He was about to create even more clones, when Shino raised a hand.

Shino flung his arms out, obviously calling out his bugs. He stepped back, and Sakura and Naruto, understanding the need for a distraction, fought hand-to-hand with the other two clones. Shino's bugs flew from his sleeves and under his coat and pants, flying at the clones furiously. They landed on the clones, completely covering them in a mass of moving black spots. They consumed all of the clones' chakra, and the clones vanished in a puff of smoke.

As soon as Sakura saw that she had a chance, she quickly knelt beside Hinata—who was closest—and folded her hands over Hinata's chest. She sighed and nodded, as if confirming with herself what was wrong with her. A blob of green light formed just underneath her hands, with even darker green blobs inside of it. After moving her hands all around Hinata's body, collecting the dark green goop as she did so, she stopped, and Hinata slowly blinked her eyes open. She was about to perform the same act on Kiba, when two ANBU jumped to the ground, similar to the masked ninja.

"Don't bother. Here's the antidote," one said, retrieving a bottle of a light blue liquid. "It didn't hurt them, anyways, just knocked them out," he added as an afterthought."

"Let's see… Naruto Uzumaki gets three points, one for discovering they were clones, another for strategy, and yet another for destroying a clone," the other said, as he turned to Naruto. "Ah… And Shino gets three points as well, two for destroying clones, and another for strategy. Sakura gets one point, and that is for being able to take away poison from someone before we gave the report."

"So… so… this was all just a _test_?" Naruto growled.

"Hai. Whether you like it or not, Naruto-kun, you'll be tested like this until the next Hokage is chosen—unless you want to drop out of the race," the original ANBU explained. "And you three being all around each other makes it easier. Now, if you don't mind, we have a Hyuuga to test as well."

The two ANBU members left in a flurry of leaves, contrary to the usual puff of smoke. Naruto growled from deep in his throat, and Sakura pouted for she had only gotten a single point.

"What a silly system. Do they simply just pick who gets points for what?" Sakura demanded.

"Sakura," Shino began, attracting Sakura's attention. She was somewhat shocked that Shino had directly talked to her, for that usually wasn't the case. "I do not wish to step into territories that don't' belong to me, but… It seems to me that you can't be an effective medical nin at the hospital and Hokage at the same time. I suggest that you either drop one or the other." When Sakura opened her mouth to protest, Shino held up a hand. "I speak only as a friend. Please, if you wish to ignore my advice, do so. It's just advice," he said, before giving his attention to Kiba.

"Hinata, are you okay?" Naruto asked gently as he leaned over his girlfriend, who was currently supporting herself on her elbows.

"Yeah, I feel better than Akamaru and Kiba look. I guess Sakura' s treatment is better than the antidote, hmm?" Hinata asked with a small smile.

"Oh, them? I think they're just acting like that so that Shino'll fawn over them," Naruto pointed out with a smirk. "And… I'm sorry. You'll… you'll be put into a lot of these types of situations because you'll be around me so much," Naruto apologized gently, automatically reaching out his hand to brush a lock of Hinata's hair behind her ears. His hands slipped down to her cheek and rested softly there.

"Ano… it's… o-okay…" Hinata replied, blushing madly and looking down out of embarrassment.

"Ano… can I kiss you…?" Naruto asked, not wanting to make her run away in shock from a sudden move.

"Uh… uh…" Hinata began, unsure of what to say.

"Sorry to ruin the mood, but PDA around friends is fine, you know," Sakura said with a smirk from the tree, where she had apparently simmered enough to where she was calm.

"PDA?" Naruto asked, unsure of what the initials meant.

"Public Displays of Affection," Sakura explained with a sigh, shaking her head lightly. _'Really, these two…'_ she thought. "Same to you two!" she called over at Shino and Kiba, who looked confused and dumb folded at her sudden comment.

----

Hinata sat on her bed, studying the instructions for her current level of medic nin training, trying to make sure there was nothing she overlooked. Sakura knocked on the doorframe, for the door was wide open, but Sakura did not like entering anyone's room without their permission.

"You're not going to find anything remotely helpful in the instructions. They cut out all the hints," Sakura said with a smirk. "Can I come in?" she asked politely.

"Of course, Sakura-san," Hinata answered back with a smile.

"Ch, using the chan is just fine," Sakura said with a soft shake of her head. "But… really, what I came in here for is advice on someone else's advice," she began.

"Do you want to know if I think you should follow Shino's advice?" Hinata asked, sure about whose advice she needed advice on, but not so sure about why.

"Well… his advice made sense. I can't possibly concentrate on being a medical nin, and still the Hokage. Even with Tsunade, being a medic nin is sort of secondary—hell, it's _way_ secondary. She only is used if it's so extreme only she can do the procedure, and lately, she's been teaching me most of the things like that. But… well… Was Shino really talking to me as a friend, or was he talking to me from the point of view of someone who really wants the position of Hokage?" Sakura asked. "You might not know, but… You've known him longer and all…"

At this point, Sakura was pretty much rambling. Hinata put her hand on Sakura's to quiet her before talking. "Shino does not want the position of Hokage as much as you might think. You see, if he becomes the Hokage… He won't be able to marry Kiba," Hinata almost explained the whole situation to Sakura, but knew that would be a mistake, for she had still not told Naruto. She'd let Sakura make up her own reasons. "And there was definitely no hostility in his tone. He really thinks that, and he's not just trying to get you to drop out. If you think you should take the path of a medic nin and stick to that, then follow that path. The goal of Hokage is not for everyone," Hinata explained.

"What about you? What are your goals?" Sakura asked curiously, keeping the conversation going while she processed the new information.

"I… I want to be a medic nin, of course… And I want to be considered apt to be the head of the Hyuuga clan. Even if it still ends up being Hanabi, as long as my family thinks I was good enough… And of course, I want a happy family," Hinata finished anticlimactically.

----

"What do you mean, you're dropping out?" Tsunade demanded, slamming her hands onto the desk.

"I… I can't be a true medic nin and a Hokage at the same time. I'll be needed out on the field constantly, and besides, like… like the ANBU said yesterday… I hold back to much in fights, because of the rule of protecting yourself to be able to heal others. I would not make a good Hokage, simply because I want to follow this path. Like a good friend said… 'The goal of Hokage is not for everyone'. Gomen, Tsunade-sama… I may have disappointed you, but…" Sakura said trailing off at the end while apologizing, for the apology was not really sincere.

Tsunade sighed and clicked her fingernails against the desk rhythmically. "Can't be helped, I suppose. Fine, I'll tell the ANBU to scratch your name off of the list. "Besides, this might be of use in the next test…" she said with a small smirk.

"What is going to happen?" Sakura asked curiously, not really expecting to be given a straight answer.

"You'll find out when it does happen, victim," Tsunade said with a little chuckle. "This will be good…"

----

"Hmm. You actually followed my advice, I see?" Shino asked after Sakura announced her forfeit from the tournament.

"Yeah, I did. I realized that I'd much rather be a medical ninja than a Hokage. You can't truly be both at the same time," Sakura said with a small nod.

"Ahh. What makes you think that I was not just trying to make you drop out of the race so that it will be easier to win?" Shino asked. Sakura couldn't be sure, but she got the distinct impression he had an eyebrow raised.

"I'm not sure… I just found out about something that made me realize that well, you wouldn't have lied," Sakura said with a small wink.

"Ahh. The wedding?" Shino asked in confirmation, forgetting completely that Hinata had yet to tell Naruto, who was sitting right beside them, about the wedding.

"What wedding?" Naruto asked innocently, wondering what it could possibly be.

**A/N: Ahh, a cliffhanger! Sorry, I had to. Well, okay, not really, but I thought it would be a good place to end. I'm already planning out how the next chapter will start and all! Review, pretty please, even though I'm acting like the mother of a son of a bitch?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

Naruto was fuming. Neji was pleased. Hinata was anxious. Kiba was confused. Sakura was worried about Naruto's reaction. Shino was…interested.

To recap, by a slip of the mouth, Shino had just mentioned the wedding to Naruto accidentally (whether it was by accident, _really_ by accident, only Shino knew). Hinata automatically panicked and began yelling strange things about the wedding, and mentioned that it would be she and Shino who'd be getting married in only a year.

After calming down immensely, Hinata finally explained it to Naruto, all about how she was betrothed to Shino, but neither of them wished to be married. She also told him of the loophole, and her only chance to not have to marry Shino was if she married Naruto after he achieved the position of Hokage.

Naruto's fists were now clenched, and he was pointed in Hinata's direction. "First, the beatings… Then the marriage your father set up between you and Shino… Anything else important you're keeping from me?" Naruto asked through clenched teeth.

"Iie," Hinata said, shaking her head from side-to-side. "Gomen, but… I couldn't really tell you…" she said, biting her lip and looking down. "You… you seem like the type who'd marry me because he knew about it… Even if he didn't want to…" Hinata admitted, tears forming just beneath her eyes.

Naruto's anger—towards Hinata keeping the secret from him, anyways—went away just as quickly as it had come. He lifted his hands gently to her cheeks and cradled the soft, smooth skin, using his thumbs to wipe away the moisture that had formed into pools at the bottom of her eyes.

"Never be sorry. Don't cry," Naruto halfway whimpered, unable to stand the sight of Hinata shedding tears.

Hinata, at this action by Naruto, no longer felt like crying, and the tears that had threatened to fall seemed as if they had never been there. Naruto leaned forward towards her, and though she had already been comforted completely by his words, hugged her tightly, and whispered into her ears, as if he thought she hadn't heard him before, "Don't cry."

Hinata clutched at the back of his jacket and nodded tentatively against his neck, trying not to scratch herself on the zipper.

"Gomen, Hinata. I thought he knew," Shino apologized, pushing his glasses up (as was his custom when he was uncomfortable).

"What's going on?" Kiba asked, completely dumb folded.

'_Shit. I never did tell Kiba, did I?'_ Shino asked himself with a sigh. He turned towards Kiba with a sigh, and, knowing that Naruto would eventually tell Kiba, he explained the situation to Kiba.

After he did so, Kiba was quite… silent. "… So, why are you still running?" Kiba asked after a length of time.

"Because it would be dishonorable to drop out, for me," Shino added as an afterthought.

"Do I really mean that little to you?" Kiba asked, his tone somewhat… empty, as if something had died inside of him. Akamaru was looking up at his master with sympathetic eyes, as if he could feel the things that Kiba felt.

Shino had no idea how to answer. However, he nearly sighed in relief when men, similar to the ones from before, appeared. Shino expected them to knock Kiba, Sakura, Hinata, and Akamaru out, as they had before (although, before, Sakura wasn't a victim), but instead, each one of them grabbed someone (except Akamaru, they knocked him out because he'd be annoying to grab) and ran in the direction of the forests.

This time, it was just Naruto and Shino competing. Naruto turned to Shino, and noting that they went in two different directions. The girls were being taken in one direction, while Kiba was being taken in another. Surprisingly enough, the three of them had stopped screaming a long time ago, because they knew that it was a part of the test at this point, and protesting was futile, anyways.

"Go after Kiba," Naruto said firmly before running in the direction of Sakura and Hinata. Shino sighed, knowing that Naruto would get more points from saving the girls, but really, he couldn't leave Kiba all by himself. So, he took off after Kiba, knowing that anyways, Kiba might forgive him if he was the one who 'rescued' him, or at least, forget about it—for a little while, just long enough for Shino to think about it.

Maybe.

And so, Shino flung out his arms, and commanded his bugs to go ahead of him and attach themselves to the ninja that had carried Kiba away, just as a tracking device, just in case he should lose sight of the 'kidnapper'.

Meanwhile, Naruto was attempting to think up a tactic in fighting the ninja. Their hands were occupied, true, but, even though they couldn't really fight back, this posed a problem—getting the captives back without bodily harming them. Naruto was still contemplating how to handle them, when he went over what he had in stock.

'_10 kunai, 16 shuriken, four or five lengths of ten foot wire, two sets of twenty foot wire, and about three flash bombs…'_ Naruto went over in his mind as he chased after the two ninja.

However, as he was thinking, they cleverly changed courses. Naruto quickly made a chakra reinforced Kage Bunshin and sent it after the ninja carrying Sakura, thankful that they thought the same thoughts at the same time he did.

'_Let's see… If I get above them, and throw a kunai with wire attached at an angle down at them and have it wrap around the both of them…'_ Naruto thought. Instead of jumping upwards (which would have lost time), he jumped forward and put his feet in front of him—directly in front—and had them quickly attach to a tree, and then, ran up it's trunk to the branch above. He continued jumping at the same pace the other ninja was, which saved time n comparison to having simply jumped upwards and continuing to run then.

He pulled out the wire and kunai, and, knowing his clone was doing the same, quickly wrapped the wire into the end of the hole of the kunai. He pulled it tight using his teeth as he ran, unable to stop running. He swung the kunai, attached to the wire, above his head in a great circle, before finally throwing the kunai down. The kunai went in front of the ninja, but, to Naruto's chagrin, it attached to the tree trunk.

That wasn't supposed to happen. The ninja bounced back from the wire, and, unable to stop itself, fell backwards. It disappeared a puff of smoke, and Naruto silently cursed the ANBU's refusal to make chakra-reinforced clones when it wasn't needed.

Naruto, without thinking, flung himself downwards. _'Shit_,' he thought almost as soon as he did it. When he realized he still was clutching onto the end of the wire, he quickly reinforced the grip he had on the wire with chakra and pointed downwards at Hinata, forcing himself to more quickly fall.

She had enough sense to turn in midair so that her back was facing the ground, which forced her to slow. She stretched out her hand, and Naruto did the same.

He was wondering if he'd make it or not. It would be a close call, either way, and Naruto needed to speed himself up. He expelled some chakra from his feet, hoping somehow that it'd push against air, the same way it would do with water, and propel him further through the air.

Because of this, even if it didn't make him go much faster, it put him on the 'safe' side of the borderline that he was fluctuating between. He grabbed Hinata's hand and pulled her close to her body.

POP

The sound, which was really very soft, echoed through the forest (in Hinata's ears), twice echoed (the same scenario having been played out with Sakura). Sakura landed on the ground with a small _thump_ as Naruto's clone disappeared, but Hinata was left alone with a hurt Naruto.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed, shocked. Something Naruto hadn't thought about when he dived down after her, holding onto the wire, was that his arm could get pulled out of its socket.

----

Sakura sighed in annoyance as she stood above Naruto, whose arm was on a sling.

"Congratulations. Because of your idiocy, you almost tore your rotator cuff. Be more careful next time." Sakura threw down the clipboard onto Naruto's bed ad turned to him. "You need to have ice applied on it to keep swelling down. No training for today or the next three days, and then, just to be sure, be sure to do some shoulder exercises. You're lucky to have Hinata to take care of you," Sakura muttered darkly before walking out of the room.

Naruto sighed.

"She's angry because she was worried, you know," Hinata pointed out softly as she grabbed a cloth rag and placed ice inside of it.

"I know," Naruto replied. He winced in shock when Hinata applied the shoddy excuse for a ice pack to Naruto's shoulder.

"Shh, shh…" Hinata chided gently, even though she knew the sudden hissing sound that issued from his lips was out of shock, not out of pain.

He fell silent, and looked away. Hinata sighed. "Thanks for saving me," she said, breaking the silence.

"Don't thank me. Sorry for getting you into this situation," Naruto replied.

"Don't be sorry. You putting me in these situations may save my happiness," Hinata responded, similar to the way Naruto had cut her gratitude off.

"Well, I guess we're at a checkmate, ne?" Naruto asked with a small smirk, attempting to use Shikamaru's Go lingo.

"Stalemate," Hinata automatically corrected. "And I'm guessing Shikamaru is still beating you at Go, right?" Hinata asked with a small chuckle.

"Yeah. Badly," Naruto replied in the affirmative.

"Oh, right. The ANBU gave out points, again. You got five," Hinata said suddenly.

"Five?" Naruto asked in shock.

"Yeah. Two for saving me and Sakura, one for using resources on the move, one for not hurting me, and one for wounding yourself at the risk of saving me," Hinata explained.

"… Wow, I got a point for being an idiot… But why didn't a get a point for not hurting Sakura?" Naruto asked.

"Because you left her alone in the middle of the forest, and she landed on her butt—hard—from about three foot above the ground," Hinata explained with a small chuckle.

----

Shino, unlike Naruto, had retrieved Kiba relatively easily and achieved three points (one for saving Kiba, one for not hurting Kiba, and one for having a tacking device). He was still contemplating his answer to Kiba's earlier question, when Kiba, alongside Akamaru, walked up to Shino.

"Don't think I forgot about my question from earlier," Kiba growled lightly.

"Yes, you did," Shino pointed out with a sigh.

"Damn. You're right, Akamaru reminded me," Kiba said with a sigh.

And then, Shino did the unthinkable—he laughed. In response to his laugh, Kiba shuddered and cried out, "That's creepy!"

Shino gave him a 'what?' look from behind the glasses, and Kiba explained, "You laughing! I used to think that, because you didn't laugh, you were creepy, but now that I hear it…!" He trailed off at the end of this statement, but instead, shuddered again to prove his point. "Why'd you laugh, anyways?"

"I was laughing because my boyfriend has to be reminded of things by his dog," Shino admitted with a sigh.

"Oh. I guess that is funny…" Kiba said, before chuckling. After a few sharp barks from Akamaru, Kiba turned back to Shino. "Don't think I forgot about my question from earlier," he growled once again.

Shino sighed. "You mean a lot to me. But… I don't think I can give up honor," Shino explained, averting his gaze from Kiba behind the sunglasses. _'He'll never know…'_ Shino told himself, while looking not at Kiba's eyes, but at his ear.

"Look at me," Kiba commanded, shocking Shino (and himself) for knowing that Shino wasn't looking directly at him. "Can… can you honestly say… That I mean less to you than honor? What… what if I said I'd die if you kept running for Hokage?"

"You aren't that dramatic," Shino pointed out dryly.

"I…! Fine, if you don't, I'll never talk to you again!" Kiba yelled out, though, after it left his lips, he was slightly mortified that he had used such a childish threat.

"… Really?" Shino asked.

"Really," Kiba said with a nod, knowing that he couldn't take it back.

"…" Shino's silence worried Kiba, but Shino finally stood up and sighed. "Very well. I shall drop out, but only on two conditions," Shino finally decided.

"What?" Kiba asked, intrigued.

"The first is that my father never finds out. The second is that, when Hinata and Naruto marry, you and I get married," Shino decided firmly.

"What?" Kiba parroted from earlier, not sure of what he heard.

"My father doesn't find out and you and I get married later on," Shino explained slowly, as if Kiba had mental issues.

"… What?" Kiba asked again.

"Look. I'm not dropping out to keep a relationship going if I don't have some sort of confirmation that it'll go, you know, all the way…" Shino explained.

"But we haven't even said that we loved each other yet! There's a process! You know, getting to know each other, 'I like you', dating, 'I love you', even more dating, 'I do'!" Kiba cried out, practically ranting.

"Well, we know each other extremely well… We've said the 'I like you'… We've dated… I love you, Kiba," Shino thought, sarcastically ticking off the 'processes' on his fingers.

"… I love you, too, but…" Kiba whimpered dejectedly, finally falling into place beside Shino on the bench. "It seems too soon…" Kiba explained.

"Do you wish to marry me?" Shino asked, after a few seconds of thinking.

"Not at the moment…"

"Is that the direction you want this relationship to go in?" Shino asked.

"Yeah," Kiba replied, without hardly thinking.

"That's all I need," Shino said softly, before leaning against Kiba's shoulder. "If you really want me to, I'll drop out," Shino said quietly.

"Thanks," Kiba muttered before wrapping his arms around Shino's shoulder and kissing him on the top of the head.

----

"You're dropping out, too?" Tsunade asked with a sigh.

"Hai. But, if you could, would you not inform my father that I've dropped out?" Shino asked after a small length of time.

"Fine, but only on the condition you give me your reason," Tsunade replied with a smirk.

"… My boyfriend asked me, too," Shino explained.

"You're whipped," Tsunade stated, without thinking about it.

"… You're right," Shino replied with a small chuckle.


	7. Chapter 7

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

**A/N: Wow! I don't usually look at my number of reviews, but this story has the most reviews I've ever gotten for a single story! It might be one of my only stories to ever hit 100 reviews! I love you ALL!**

----

Neji kneeled in front of Hiashi, his head bent towards the ground. He really was getting tired of these reports—after all, having to actually kneel down in front of the man who had made your life a living hell, gave you a ray of hope by training you, only to have you become one of his spies was just slightly degrading.

"The Aburame boy has dropped out of the running for Hokage, and since the Haruno girl has also dropped out, I am Naruto's only opponent. Also, Uzumaki now knows fully of Hinata's situation," Neji explained briefly, wanting the 'conversation' with his uncle to be over with as quickly as possible.

"… So, if you do not win the position of Hokage, Uzumaki will get it," Hiashi stated—not questioned, stated.

"Hai," Neji answered back, just as firmly. But, inside his head, he was wondering if he could possibly beat the Uzumaki. Granted, he himself had grown vastly stronger since being taught the complete art of the Juken and the fighting style of the Hyuuga clan. However, Neji had learned pretty much all he would ever learn—he had learned all of the Juken moves, and all he could really do at this point was to perfect it.

Uzumaki, however, was different. It was as if his goals were not to memorize and perfect one style, but _all_ of them.

This meant he was constantly improving, and improved at a faster rate than he, himself, improved.

And, just a few years ago, when Naruto and Neji fought, Neji had lost—because Naruto was extremely clever. Calling him a genius was perhaps a bit much, but he was most definitely clever. And that was something that Neji couldn't obtain. In addition, he had no clue how many points Naruto had obtained thus far, either. Neji himself has seven points, but it was possible to pretty much get an infinite amount of points, due to the fact that the ANBU made up the rules as they went along.

Neji listened for his uncle to say something—_anything_—hoping desperately for a dismissal.

"You have little chance of beating the Uzumaki boy. Perhaps if Aburame or Haruno were still running, he might not have won, but considering he beat you when you still Genin… We may just have to take another approach. Neji, you no longer have to keep track of the Uzumaki and Hinata. You are dismissed from any spying duties," Hiashi said, his tone (falsely) showing that he was annoyed.

"But.. Hyuuga-sama… About the marriage…" Neji began, unsure of how to finish the sentence.

"You are not banished. I will, however, not arrange the marriage between you and Ama. Instead, you may marry—or not marry—whomever you wish. Now, take your leave," Hiashi commanded.

Neji gave him a low bow and exited the room. "Arigatou, uncle," he said, boldly using the term uncle as he left the room.

'_So, he saw through me, ne? Ch, it's time I really started acting like an uncle, and a father for that matter, anyways…'_ Hiashi thought to himself with a soft smile, which he quickly erased when he realized that anyone could see it, simply by activating the Byakugan.

----

"Oi! Naruto!" Shikamaru called from outside the door of an apartment. In front of him sat a board with go pieces already arranged, and Shikamaru was sitting on one side of the board, the other side unoccupied.

"Yeah, Shikamaru?" Naruto called. Hinata was standing beside him, and she was curious as to why Shikamaru would purposely seek out Naruto. She could tell that it wasn't just a casual meeting—Shikamaru would never go out of his way to ask someone to play a game of go with him, after all.

"Play a game?" Shikamaru asked, motioning towards the go board.

"Uh, no, I'm busy…" Naruto replied, scratching his cheek in confusion. Shikamaru sighed and glared at him.

"Gomen, Naruto. I thought that I wouldn't have to actually say it. This is a test, you need to take it, or Neji' will get points and you won't," Shikamaru stated bluntly. "It's troublesome, I know, but…" Shikamaru mumbled with a shrug.

"What are you waiting for? You go first!" Naruto exclaimed, somehow suddenly in front of Shikamaru, leaning over the board, staring intently at the pieces.

"No, actually, _you_ go first…" Shikamaru mumbled, adding a 'troublesome' at the end to satisfy his own O.C.D.s about using that particular word.

"Oh! Right!" Naruto exclaimed.

----

Shikamaru was slightly impressed. He had played with Naruto before—a little after he arrived back from his three year trip, and a few more times recently—and, even though he didn't really strategize far into the future, he could get out of a bind, seemingly, with ease. Since he knew what all of the pieces did, and how to use them, he could draw the game out.

And Shikamaru was giving a point for every fifteen moves the other ninja made it through. He'd also give him a point if he could take his queen (though not any other pieces), he'd give him a point for every time he got out of check, and he'd give him five if he could manage to win.

But, of course, Shikamaru never lost, and he knew he never would. It was a sad realization, actually, but it was true.

Every time Shikamaru tried to force him into a checkmate, Naruto would scrutinize the board, and find an out, somehow… Sometimes they were so either blatantly obvious, or so out of the ordinary, Shikamaru couldn't believe it. But now that, it seemed, that because Naruto was playing for position of Hokage, he was trying his best.

In the end, he'd ended up with six points. He'd made it thirty-five moves, which constituted two points; and, also, he'd gotten out of check four times.

He had played Neji earlier, and it was a disturbing thought, but he'd gotten seven points. He'd made it forty-six moves, which gave him his first three; he'd gotten out of a check three times; and also, he had managed to get his queen.

So, in the end, after that test, they became tied. Not that it mattered at that point, but it meant that, so far, they were pretty much equal. And, if it ended up as a tie, they'd be fighting in a tournament.

But, then again, the Hokage was a sadistic person. She might just have them fight for the second test, after all…

----

Tenten was relieved. She, Lee, and Gai-sensei hadn't seen Neji sleep in two months. But, when she tried knocking on the door of the Hyuuga compound to ask for him, the Branch family member—whose name was Takashi—that answered the door told her that he was asleep.

So, when she hugged him, tears leaking out of her eyes, and then ran away, the Branch member was just slightly confused.

The next morning, when Neji finally awakened, Takashi told Neji what had happened between him and 'that odd Ama girl'.

And was shocked to see Neji _smiling_. He walked away after Neji told him that that was all he needed to hear, and gladly went. But that was a kind of smile he hadn't seen on Neji's face in a long time.

After Takashi left, Neji jumped up, feeling extremely invigorated. He had a choice, now! But, of course, he couldn't just drop out of the contest, for then his uncle might just take back what he said, and perhaps even marry him to someone he did not wish to wed.

But, as long as he kept his uncle happy, he'd be able to marry whomever he wanted, as long as whomever he wanted wished to marry him as well, and could marry whomever they wanted.

And so, this happy thought in his mind, he dressed for the day, brushed his hair and put it in the usual ponytail (though he considered letting it hang loose, because Tenten often said she wanted to see it loose), and made sure he wasn't smiling before he exited the room to eat.

----

For the first time in _ages_, Neji actually sparred with Lee (he refused to actually fight). For the first time in _ages_, Neji was actually into the training. For the first time in _ages_, both Lee and Tenten wore huge grins the entire time, even during sparring and even when Tenten missed the target board, sometimes completely.

Gai finally told them, as the sun was setting, that they could stop training for the day ("Although if the passionate flames of your youth are still burning, you can still continue training with me as I run around the village!" to which Lee automatically agreed).

Neji sighed as he watched the two run off _fast_, despite Lee's obvious fatigue. "Tenten, would you like to be treated to dinner…? There's something I want to talk over with you…"

Tenten blushed at the use of no honorific, but she nodded and replied affirmative.

Neji took her to a place that the Hyuugas were patrons of. It was a sushi bar, named _Sashimi Delights_. "I hope you like sushi…" he began as they walked in. Tenten nodded, but wondered why he continued leading him into the restaurant even though his comment showed he was unsure whether or not she liked it.

'_Or, perhaps, he knows you like sushi, but only asked that to be polite… You did bring sushi for lunch a few times,'_ Tenten reminded herself.

They walked into a large room, with many people surrounding small tables and knelt down, eating sushi and talking. Some seemed like they were just friends, others seemed like couples, and yet others seemed to be celebrating.

'_I wonder what we'll look like…?'_ Tenten thought to herself wistfully as Neji stood in front of her, ordering the food from a man in a black vest and other westernized clothes.

They were led to a small table for two, and another waiter followed him with hot tea. He poured the tea into the two opposite cups, and set the rest of the tea to the side of the table on top of a hotplate to keep it from growing cold.

The sushi didn't take long to be brought to the table, but it did take just enough time for it to show that it was freshly made. They sat in silence until it came, a silence that was both comfortable and uncomfortable.

The sushi was place in front of them, and Neji and Tenten broke apart their chopsticks. Apparently, if Neji had remembered she liked sushi, he didn't remember which type she liked, for he had gotten just about every type the restaurant had available. She piled pieces with salmon on top on one side of her plate, along with other pieces that were—in Neji's views—'fake' sushi, for it had crabmeat inside of it and no raw fish.

After she took a bite of the 'fake' sushi, she turned to Neji. "Oh, what did you want to ask me?" she asked before sipping at her tea.

"How… how are your parents going about… What is the typical Ama family norm for marrying daughters?" Neji asked, turning a personal statement into a less awkward question, but you could tell that Tenten was still shocked.

"Well… arranged marriages aren't unheard of, but they don't go searching for them, and they're never from birth… Usually the daughter chooses, and if the parents are in agreement, then it is allowed…" Tenten replied, a slight blush apparent on her face.

"Ah. And courtship?" Neji asked, leaning forward. His sadistic side was beginning to kick in—he was actually enjoying making her blush!

"Uh, well, that is usually completely separated from the parents, though the one who is doing the courting is introduced to the parents after a few dates…" Tenten replied, still blushing.

"Ah. Well, Tenten Ama, would you undergo the rituals of courtship with me?" Neji asked, hiding the blush on his face. Hyuugas didn't blush, not even when romance was involved.

"Uh, hai…" she replied, looking down, her blush increasing.

----

"I wonder how many more tests there will be…?" Naruto asked aloud, staring at the sky as he sat with everyone else. Kiba shrugged; Shino went to push up his glasses, but was held back by Kiba, who was currently being leaned against; Akamaru was sleeping; and Hinata and Sakura actually thought about it.

"So far, in the span of two months, there have been three. And there's about ten months left. So, I guess about… fifteen more, if they keep up their pace…" Sakura explained after doing a quick bit of math.

"See? Let Sakura get things like that…" Kiba muttered sleepily.

"Don't go to sleep. You'll get none tonight," Shino commanded lightly, his 'maternal senses' as Naruto put it, kicking in.

"What…? Oh, right," Kiba replied, sitting up straight (much to Shino's chagrin) and rubbing his eyes.

"Hey, how come you and Hinata aren't that close yet?" Sakura asked.

Naruto looked at Hinata and shrugged. Hinata blushed and looked away. Yes, why hadn't they developed like a normal couple, like Shino and Kiba…? Weren't they, just a little while ago, progessing the same...?

**A/N: Yes, I'm putting a little more work into the couples. And I'm drawing out the tests a bit as well. With the way I wrote it, it kind of makes it seem that they have tests daily, eh...**


	8. Chapter 8

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

In the end, it was true that they, though had technically became a couple before Kiba and Shino, they were progressing slower. As Naruto reluctantly admitted to Kiba and Shino, he had only kissed her—and never with tongue. Kiba and Shino froze, glanced at each other (though you couldn't tell Shino did), and laughed.

Naruto growled lowly, a warning for them to shut up—though it wasn't very convincing, since even as he did it, there was a blush playing on his face.

"I think… Hmm… Naruto might be the submissive type… And Hinata _definitely_ is," Kiba thought out loud, his finger wrapping around his chin as if deep in thought.

"Yes… submissive and somewhat submissive doesn't work out well… Naruto, you're going to have to force yourself to be more dominative…" Shino pointed out.

"Oh, we could…!" Kiba began, but Shino immediately threw out what he knew would his suggestion.

"No. Don't even think it. We'll just make it worse," Shino interrupted, automatically stopping his idea of helping the two get closer.

"But, why…?" Kiba began.

"Because," Shino replied.

Naruto coughed, silently thinking about how uncomfortable the lover's quarrel was. He turned around, leaving the two to argue over Shino's logic. He paused, a curious thought suddenly striking him.

"Have you seen what Shino looks like underneath the glasses and the jacket yet?" he asked, paused, and then walked away, feeling both the shocked look from Kiba, and the dark, _very_ dark glare from Shino, even through the glasses.

----

"Naruto-kun, why did you ask that?" Hinata asked, her tone obviously filled with anxiety. Unbeknownst to Shino, Kiba, Naruto, Sakura, Akamaru, or even Kurenai, Hinata had noticed certain… _things_ between the two of them maybe a year or so before anything actually happened between them. She noticed, for instance, Kiba suddenly going from saying he was 'straight' to saying he was 'bisexual'. She also noticed Kiba's love of calling Shino girly. She also noticed Shino never actually _caring_ that he was called girly, but when she joked about it, he seemed somewhat… hurt, she supposed. Hinata, never, of course, mentioned _any_ of this to the boys, for she had decided that it was best not to and make them uncomfortable, but she was glad they finally were in a serious relationship.

And she wanted it to stay that way. She wanted them married, and some how acquiring kids (she assumed adoption, but she had strange fantasies of kidnapping…), and her growing up as a sort of aunt to their children.

And Naruto had probably, in his comment—which she was sure she knew the answer to, anyways—made them really uncomfortable.

"I didn't mean to do anything!" Naruto explained, waving his hands frantically. "I… It just came out!" he explained, still not fully comprehending what exactly he had done wrong.

Hinata sighed in frustration and exasperation. What was she to do with Naruto? Hinata smiled slightly at that thought, and said, "I guess it's okay… It's probably not healthy to be in a relationship where you don't know what your boyfriend's face looks like," Hinata replied, reluctantly agreeing.

Naruto let out a breath of relief. He had been worried that Hinata was seriously mad at him, but that, apparently, was not the case. Perhaps she was just anxious.

"So, what did they say was our problem?" Hinata asked finally, still interested in Shino's take of their 'relationship problems'.

"He says that we're both too submissive and not dominative enough," Naruto stated. He was able to keep a straight face, without looking away or freaking out. Well, he blushed a little bit, but Hinata's blush so outshined it that it wasn't funny.

"Oh," she said simply, staring down at the ground.

They would have continued the talk—really, they would have—but another ANBU member suddenly landed beside them, a monkey mask adorning his face. "Uzumaki. You and Hyuuga will be taking your test now," he said.

"… Together?" Naruto asked, slightly confused. Sure, if people who were being tested happened to be at the same place at the same time, they'd take the tests together, but now, it was as if they were being forced to take the test together.

"Hai. You'll see once you arrive. Gomen, Hyuuga-chan, but you'll have to stay behind," the ANBU explained, addressing Hinata. Hinata nodded silently and watched as Naruto followed the ANBU away, Naruto just barely glancing back at Hinata.

'_More dominative, ne?' _Hinata thought to herself, while staring at her hands reflectively.

----

Naruto stared at the scene, bemused. Neji was standing, Konohamaru, Udon, and Moegi crawling over him. Lined up across from them, Hanabi, and two other new Chuunin were standing.

What was funny is that Konohamaru and his team were not making it easy for Neji. He was trying to get them in control without having to resort to violence.

"Naruto-nii!" Konohamaru called out as Naruto entered the scene. "This creepy guy is trying to boss me!" he elaborated, pointing an accusing finger at Neji, who was currently trying to pry the three young Chuunin off of his body.

"Creepy? I think he's cute!" Moegi cried out, her perch currently behind Neji's back, her arms encircling Neji's neck.

Hanabi growled. "You're not worthy of touching a Hyuuga, even if it's a Branch member…"

"Hanabi, why in the world do you…" began one of the boys on her team, by the name of Keiji Tokushima. He automatically stopped, however, when he noticed the glare he was receiving from the, although much shorter, scarier girl.

The other boy on Hanabi's team just glared at her, from behind the other boy. "Don't pick on Keiji, Hanabi-chan," he said, his voice taunting and singsong, obviously not intimidated—at _all­_—by the Hyuuga heiress. He was Takeo Fukuoka, a defender of the weak and defenseless, as he had come to be known as. Naruto had heard of him—and he liked him already.

"Ch, why, or else your boyfriend will cry?" Hanabi asked cruelly, glaring at him. Takeo and Keiji seemed to freeze, as if they were in shock.

"Hey…! He's not my… I don't…!" Keiji began, obviously unsure of what to say.

"What if he was?" Takeo asked, wrapping his arm around Keiji's shoulder. He leaned forward to Keiji, and Naruto could faintly hear him whispered, "Play along."

Keiji was able to blush, which made it seem so much more authentic. Hanabi's mouth dropped open as Keiji muttered, "I thought you weren't going to tell anyone…"

The ANBU members had, apparently, had enough comic relief to fill their day. The same member who brought Naruto to the clearing walked in between the two groups, clapping his hands loudly. "We need to start the test! Align yourselves perfectly, the competitors behind their Chuunin!"

They all did as they were bade, and listened as another ANBU member, wearing a white kitsune mask, began explaining the rules. "You shall be attempting to get the other team's flag. The competitors must control their teams and, without actually doing anything but ordering their team members. You start at the designated points, which we will take you to," he explained, a smirk hidden behind his mask as he watched Hanabi glare at the opposite team members, her own members, her captain, the opposing team's captain, the ANBU, and… well, practically the whole forest, all at once. If it could be done, Hanabi could do it.

The ANBU members led Naruto and Neji away, far into the confines of the forest. All the while, Hanabi and Takeo were having staring contests, while Keiji stood behind them nervously, as if he was trying to say that they should all get along.

"Ano… you two shouldn't be fighting…" Naruto pointed out, scratching his cheek absent-mindedly.

"None of your damn business," Hanabi bit back.

"Why are you so dead-set against Naruto? You've barely ever talked to him before, from what I've seen!" Takeo argued, waving his hands frantically, as if doing those motions would prove his point further.

"Yeah… You've never mentioned or been seen with him in all the time we've been team members…" Keiji pointed out shyly.

"We're not team members. We're Chuunin. Our bond has been broken already. Get that through your heads."

Naruto couldn't stand her tone with that last sentence. Glaring at him, glaring at Neji, glaring at everyone else—he could deal with. He was used to it. But when you considered the people who were supposed to be your friends trash in that manner, and when you were so cruel to those that were only trying to help you… Needless to say, Naruto was aggravated at Hanabi. Not to mention, she was a good part of the reason why Hinata had been hurt before.

"Hanabi. Believe it or not, your bond isn't broken—far from it. You should care for your teammates, as they do for you. Your comrades, one day, may be the only ones to keep you from dying. And Neji is your family—he's never wronged you. In fact, he has more reason to hate _you_ than you have to hate him," Naruto basically growled. Well, perhaps it couldn't have been considered a growl. However, his voice was definitely somewhat hoarse and had a malicious tone to it, as if he were holding back from beating the girl to a pulp. As if to prove this point, his fists were clenched at his sides, balled up into bundles of anger that could only be released by punching, or, in this case, clenching.

Hanabi didn't really mean to retort, because even she knew that it was not a bright idea to anger Naruto. She had already subconsciously pushed him at the end of his resolve—but, even knowing this, Hanabi replied stiffly that it wasn't Naruto's business.

Mistake.

Naruto practically pounced upon the unsuspecting girl, her body pressed against the ground roughly. The ANBU member, though he really should have prevented it, stood there, and watched. It would be a good lesson for the uppity Hyuuga girl, he knew, and perhaps, just perhaps, for this one time, he should let Naruto do things his way. As long as the council didn't find out.

Naruto pulled out a kunai and held it at her throat. Keiji and Takeo were mortified, but they watched silently. "If I were a real enemy, and this happened, what do you think would happen now if you were alone? You'd _die_. But… but if I was a real enemy… and these two were here… your chances of survival have just increased hundred-fold. At this point, if they wanted, they could easily kill or counterattack me, and I would not be able to do something _and_ leave unscathed. True, you, with your amazing Juken and overall Hyuugan skill, will probably end up protecting them more than they you, but believe me, life is real fucking lonely without comrades," Naruto hissed in her ear. Throughout his speech, Hanabi struggled against Naruto's hold, and Takeo and Keiji watched silently.

Naruto finally stood up, sheathing his kunai and continuing to walk. "Come on," he instructed.

Keiji and Takeo never thought that they would see the day that Hanabi followed anyone, other than her own father. She had hardly even listened to their Jonin teacher before when they went on missions, and preferred to do things her own way. Even if she had put the entire team into danger, she didn't really mind—she would just continue plowing on, attempting to do the mission without everyone else's help as much as she could.

When she stood up, and obediently followed Naruto, Takeo and Keiji had to shake off the feeling of shock before jogging to catch up with the trio that was in front of them.

----

"We have the upper hand," Naruto commented as they ran through the forest. To answer their questioning looks, Naruto elaborated, "Konohamaru and his team have been my disciples for a while now. I doubt they'd listen to anything that he says."

----

"Why should we listen to you?" Konohamaru asked defiantly. He almost expected a bribe, one which they'd pretend to take before only helping Naruto.

"Because… You look up to Naruto, correct?" Neji asked, an idea suddenly striking him.

"Hai…" Konohamaru replied, not enjoying his tone.

"Then this is your chance to show him that you can surpass him," Neji explained with a small smirk. When he saw the boy's face light up, he knew he had hit the jackpot.

**A/N: Kind of a cliffhanger. Sorry, it's like, really late, and I have a headache. This one starts out with relationship stuff and then ends in ninja stuff. The next chapter will be vice-versa—the rest of this test, and then more relationship stuff. Review, pretty please!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

Naruto leaned in the middle of his group, trying to get them to work together. In the end, he decided to have Hanabi attack from the side, or behind, while he had Keiji and Takeo distract the other team. Of course, Hanabi had to make a clone, because Neji would definitely notice the missing member of his team, but as it was, she could only make illusionary clones, unlike Naruto's Kage Bunshin. And, according to the ANBU, Naruto wasn't allowed to perform even a single jutsu. That made things harder.

Neji's team, however, was pretty much ignoring Neji, aside from maybe the occasional piece of advice. Konohamaru had taken Neji's suggestion more literally than Neji had hoped—now, Konohamaru himself was hoping to outsmart Naruto, as opposed to allowing himself to be showed how to outsmart Naruto. And, of course, because Konohamaru thought so, Moegi and Udon followed him mindlessly, listening to his plans, and completely ignoring Neji.

While Neji was still trying to force the group to listen to him, and threatening to use force, Naruto's team had already made their way through the forest. They dropped in on the group, and Neji visibly blanched. Why did he just jump down, out in the open, instead of sneaking around? He could see that Hanabi had the flag, and that she was staying back because she had it, and because the strongest teamwork in the group was probably between Keiji and Takeo, so they were defending her.

"Guys!" Konohamaru began. "K-M-U!" he called, pointing at the other ninja, in the order, Hanabi, Keiji, and then Takeo. The other two nodded and immediately made a dash for their respective opponents, Konohamaru carrying the flag for his team.

Naruto winced. Konohamaru was the hand-to-hand sort of fighter, and would notice automatically that Hanabi was not tangible. "Keiji!" Naruto called out, motioning towards Konohamaru with his head.

Keiji automatically understood the motion, though it wasn't subtle. He threw a kunai at Konohamaru, which just barely grazed his shoulder. Konohamaru's attention turned towards Keiji, and Moegi continued to attempt to fight him. Keiji was the second best team member of Hanabi's team, but that didn't mean he was average. Really, he was above average, while Hanabi was just… pure genius.

Hanabi growled underneath her breath. Really, Keiji was acting like _he_ was protecting _her_. As if! She soon, however, realized that this growl was a mistake, for Neji had heard it. He couldn't find her, obviously, as the Byakugan was an unfair advantage—though, as Neji so kindly pointed out, sometimes certain people had certain advantages and Naruto would have to deal with that.

Neji smirked, and yelled towards Konohamaru that the real Hanabi was hiding, while the one he was trying to get to was actually an illusion. Hanabi sighed and flung forward, ready to defend the flag. Her position had been given away. She might as well defend herself instead of giving them the advantage of ambushing her.

Keiji was fighting Konohamaru and Moegi with increasing difficulty. As it was, Keiji could rather easily take on either Konohamaru or Moegi. But both was a stretch…

Neji finally gave Konohamaru orders that he followed. "Do Kage Bunshin!"

"Can't!" Konohamaru called back as he formed the seal for a regular Bunshin. _'But this'll buy time…'_ He exchanged a glance with Moegi and nodded, and Moegi knew what he had in mind. She performed a Henge, and turned herself into a copy of Konohamaru.

Soon, the area was filled with Konohamaru illusions, a Henge who looked like Konohamaru, and Konohamaru himself. Keiji knew that scrutinizing the clones would not work, for, really, even he knew that Moegi had been around Konohamaru long enough to know every detail about him. So, he fought.

He pulled out a shuriken, attached to a wire, and began spinning it around his head after performing a few seals. "Sharp Edged Whirlwind!" he called out. As he spun the shuriken around and around his head, destroying many of the illusions—which was the most optimal way to find the real Moegi and Konohamaru—a whirlwind formed above his head, which soon flew off. The shuriken fell limply to the ground, and Keiji let it lay there. It had served its purpose.

Now, forming a different seal—much like the one Ino Yamanaka used in her Shinranshin no Jutsu, in fact—he controlled the whirlwind. His seal was a box, and he moved it along with the whirlwind. He turned it towards Hanabi, though not close enough to harm Hanabi herself, just a barrier to protect her.

This left him open, however. If they were able to figure out what was wrong with his jutsu, his team would be in trouble. If he moved it too quickly or broke the seal, the whirlwind would dissipate. He was working on the former of the two problems.

Takeo, however, was still busy with just Udon—and he was the weakest of the Konohamaru-Moegi-Udon team. Takeo was a poor fighter, but he did have his good qualities. He was very good at survival tactics, informational memorizing, and chakra precision. He had just yet to find his calling, that's all.

Naruto was currently working on thinking up a strategy. After all, how hard could it be? How could he get Hanabi out of her vulnerable position? Then, it hit him! Have Hanabi give the flag to Keiji, and have her protect Keiji! She, most certainly, would not have a weak point she'd need to protect. He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, wrote a quick note to Hanabi, and threw it at her.

She grabbed it with ease, being sure not to allow anyone else to see the note. Keiji, she would admit grudgingly, was doing a good job of protecting her, though the weaknesses of his jutsu weren't hard to figure out, and were easy to break.

She smirked when she read the note. Perfect. She hated having the damn flag, anyways. She crumpled the note, no longer caring if they read it. By the time they did read it, she'd have already carried out the instructions of the note, anyways. Go ahead and let them distract themselves by reading old information.

Hanabi ran forward, holding the flag tightly against her back. She ran to Keiji and quickly broke his seal. "What?" he demanded with a growl.

"Take the flag," she commanded, handing the flag quickly to Keiji. "I can protect you from two people better than you can," she explained with a small smirk.

Keiji grumbled, but acquiesced. What other choice did he have? It was not a good thing to anger the young Hyuuga genius, after all. A boy—who had given up all hopes of being a ninja—had proven that to him _long_ before he had had a chance to even really know her at all.

Hanabi's method of destroying the clones was much more effective than his own. She used Juken on them, making them dissolved with ease. She finally came to Moegi, who fell to the ground after a hit to her solar plexus, which would usually just make you lose you breath with a simple punch—but with the Juken, it was devastating. She came to the real Konohamaru not too long afterwards, who was somewhat dangerously close to Keiji. He had been heading for the trees for an aerial attack. Not a bad strategy, but it had come too late. She had hit him with a chest blow, which was even more effective than hitting the solar plexus. He was also now out.

The only one left was Udon. Which didn't matter, now that Hanabi thought about it. All she needed was the flag. As soon as she plucked it from Konohamaru's back, the ANBU rushed forward.

"Naruto's team had succeeded. Team Uojini passes their mission, Team Yuka fails," the ANBU called. Udon sighed, knowing that Konohamaru and Moegi wouldn't be happy when they awoke. Yes, it had all been a mission. And only one team could pass it. That was their motivation—it was not just a game.

"Also, Naruto gets the full 7 points for leading the winning team. Neji gets 2 points, one for being able to convince a team to actually work, and another for good leadership skills and observation. This test is over," the ANBU member in the monkey mask said, before all of the ANBU members disappeared in a synchronized blur.

Naruto sighed. Finally. And now he could talk to Hinata.

----

Naruto was surprised to see her still at the training area, Kiba and Shino having already left to their respective areas. It was dusk, and chilly. As if to prove this, before Hinata noticed Naruto, she pulled the jacket tighter around herself.

"Ohayo, Hinata-chan!" he called out, waving madly at the surprised girl.

"Ohayo, Naruto-kun," she replied back gently, getting to her feet from the blanket on the ground. She bent down and folded the blanket up—it was the same blanket they ate lunch on top of daily, the same one everyone sat on when they were taking a break or just talking. Needless to say, because of Akamaru and the eating stains, Hinata washed it nightly—not that she'd ever tell Kiba it was mainly because of Akamaru.

Naruto arrived at the blanket just as Hinata was straightening herself back up. "You've waited for a while, ne?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head. Before Hinata could protest, he held up a hand. "Come on, we need to finish talking. We might as well talk over dinner, ne? My treat!" he exclaimed with a bright smile.

Hinata was surprised to find her heart still fluttering at the sight of his bright, illuminating smile. By now, he thought that the madly fluttering feeling would have gone away. She thought it would at least have abated slightly by now. But, no, it was all she could do to stay a normal skin color constantly.

"Uh, h-hai…" she said softly. Naruto smirked at this action. For the longest time, she had been the weirdest person in his life. But… she was now most definitely the cutest. Much cuter than Sakura and all the other girls combined.

----

"I'm not taking the glasses _or_ the coat off until you take _your_ jacket off," Shino said, a small pout playing on his lips.

"Fine. We'll turn around and then face each other again. Toss them to the side where I can see them," Kiba growled, not wanting to be screwed over in the deal. Shino nodded silently, and they turned their backs to each other. Shino unbuttoned his jacket carefully, shook it so that the sleeves were right, and then laid it down. He took off his glasses, an act usually done only before showering and bed. He folded the glasses together and tossed it gently onto the floor buffeted by his jacket. Kiba had been down taking off his jacket before Shino had even finished unbuttoning his coat, unzipping it haphazardly, and shrugging it off onto the ground behind him.

"Ready?" Kiba asked. Shino grunted an affirmative.

They turned simultaneously, and _stared_ at each other. Kiba was well toned—after all, he spent a lot of time outside. He was even somehow tanned, which confused Shino, as Kiba didn't take off his baggy jacket. Underneath the jacket was a thin tank top, which explained how he could stand the jacket constantly. Shino, however, was pale and skinny—he had little muscle tone, but Kiba knew that skill and chakra precision could easily make up for the lack of muscle.

But the main thing Kiba was staring at was Shino's _eyes_. Shino had two very good reasons for hiding his eyes behind his dark glasses: one was that it was Aburame tradition, the other being he had very girly eyes. They were a beautiful blue, shimmering with long, dark brown eyelashes. Having never seen all of Shino's face before, Kiba couldn't help but gape.

Shino shifted uncomfortably under Kiba's gaze, but not taking his eyes off of Kiba's chest. Just as Shino's eyes enthralled Kiba, Shino was enthralled in Kiba's well-toned chest.

Kiba walked forward towards Shino and cupped his cheek. "Beautiful…" he whispered softly. Shino would have _hurt_ anyone else who used that term on him. Kiba was the exception.

"Sexy?" Shino asked, the statement more like a question. He wasn't used to complimenting on appearances.

Kiba captured his lips in an awkward kiss, for Shino towered over him. Shino nearly pulled back, but he deepened the chest as well. He stopped Kiba before he could go any further, pushing a tentative hand at his chest.

"My parents will be home soon. We'd better look… normal. My dad is perceptive," Shino explained. And then, Kiba pouted.

"Well, damn," he muttered, quite annoyed. They'd have to do that again sometime…

----

"So… I need to be less submissive…" Naruto mused to himself. He turned to Hinata, a look of determination in his eyes. "Hinata-chan, I…" he began. He didn't know how he was going to finish the sentence, speech, promises, or whatever. He did not know how he'd be able to live up to what he'd be saying—really, he had very little experience. As in none. The most he had had was the accidental kiss with Sasuke, and… Naruto hoped that _that_ didn't count.

Hinata had also thought about what she was going to say. Rather, Kurenai had dropped by to give her advice. Half of it was things she couldn't use—practice abstinence before marriage, don't touch in inappropriate places—things that a mother should say to her daughter, only for her daughter to do the exact opposite. Except, Hinata was planning on following all of those rules, and it took a while for Kurenai to say something relevant to her case.

"_But the most important thing, other than not letting a guy touch anywhere on your anatomy except maybe your hands, face, and neck, is that you shouldn't rush things. Too many relationships end because they try doing things before they're too ready. And, Hinata, believe me—you're the type of person that needs to take it slowly. I understand you have to marry Naruto so you don't have to marry Shino. But, other than marriage, only do things when you are good and ready. Got it?" Kurenai asked firmly. She really did treat Hinata like a daughter, and Hinata could see that, especially in this one talk. Similar to what a real mother would do, except a bit more extreme, she'd kill anyone who touched her wrongly without her consent. And she'd teach her how to stand up for herself and her rights._

"Shh," she began gently, stopping him by holding up a hand. "It'll come when it comes," she explained with a gentle smile. Naruto smiled back. Hinata was right—it would come when it came. Naruto couldn't help but think how wise Hinata was to be able to say such a thing, and solve their 'problem', which really wasn't a problem in the end, with just a simple sentence.

**A/N: Teehee, sorry for those who are groaning at the 'it'll come when it comes' thing. Don't worry, it'll come soon. But not a lemon. Never a lemon. Not from me. Never from me. Don't even think 'bout it. XD**

**Review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

**A/N: Sorry, for the first time in my life, I actually HAVE to put up a disclaimer (I usually don't because, hell, the entirety of has a disclaimer on it). The tests in this chapter came from a book called Ogre, Ogre, which is by Piers Anthony, and part of a series called Xanth. I altered them slightly to fit the plot of Naruto, but yeah, otherwise, it's about the same. Sorry for my lack of originality, but I really liked the tests in this book, so I took them myself. Enjoy the chapter.**

"I'm going to put you under a sort of trance and genjutsu," the ANBU member began. "You may stop it at any time by yelling out 'Stop!' or something along those lines. Each genjutsu will have different rules, and you can't use any sort of jutsu in the visions; you must purely rely on your own strength. You also must determine the objectives for each genjutsu yourself."

"I don't like the idea of this test…" Naruto muttered nervously as the ANBU member sat down in front of him. They were in a barely lit room, and the only pieces of furniture in the room were two chairs—one occupied by Naruto, the other by the ANBU member.

"You'll get used to it," the ANBU member said, his voice devoid of emotion and sympathy. "Now, stare at this," he commanded gently, and Naruto stared at the pendulum that the ANBU member was holding up.

Naruto attempted to resist falling asleep, but once the ANBU member calmly told him that that was supposed to happen, Naruto allowed his eyes to slowly close. He thought he had been falling asleep, but really, he had just been put into a genjutsu.

Naruto was standing on a group of rocks, surrounded by a vast sea. The water kept splashing up at him, and rocks were crumbling from a cliff above. There was a massive thunderstorm raging around him, the lightning hitting around him on the large pinnacle he was standing upon. In the distance, he could see a tower, and from atop said tower, Naruto could hear the screams and cries of women. Naruto glanced around, not sure what to do. He could feel the ground shifting beneath him, and he knew that, if he continued to stay shocked and afraid, eh would most definitely die.

_Jumping into the water was a long shot, but it was worth a try. He dove into the water, though rocks still fell around him. He did his best to dodge the rocks while swimming, but eventually, a boulder too big to dodge fell upon him, pushing him underneath the currents…_

Naruto jolted awake, surprised to find him in the room once again. Naruto knew he had failed, and that was grating upon his nerves—how were you supposed to _win_ something like that? But, then again, that could very well be the exact purpose—maybe you weren't supposed to 'beat' it, but _prove_ something…

The ANBU member jotted down a few notes before allowing Naruto to take a gulp of ice water (for Naruto was somewhat shaky and had a thin layer of sweat on his face), and then commanding him to lean back, once again, into the chair and stare at the pendulum. This time, without any resistance whatsoever, Naruto allowed himself to be put under the genjutsu…

_Naruto was standing amid lions and lionesses, along with a cub. They were all snarling threateningly, their teeth bared in disapproval and hunger. Naruto reached for a shuriken or a kunai, but to his chagrin, there were none at all on his person. There were no rocks or sharp objects of any sort in the cave, and he had no manner of protecting himself._

_Even knowing that it would do no good, Naruto put his arms in front of his face defensively. The lions pounced upon him, the older male lions feeding first. He could feel his skin being agonizingly ripped apart, being eaten alive by these beasts… They were chewing huge holes in his midsection, taking bites out of his face—but never enough, or in the right spot, to kill him. Or, rather, he didn't die, even though it was definitely enough to normally kill a person—it was a part of the genjutsu. _

_Once even the cubs had had their fill, they stopped, leaving Naruto just barely alive. He was blinded, having had his eyes chewed out, leaving empty sockets. He could not move, nor could he scream or speak. He could only lie there. _

_It was still in the afternoon out, and Naruto was dazedly attempting to think of how to get out of his predicament. He refused to call out and cancel the test—there **had** to be a way out of this, after all. Then, the flies came. They were crawling in various orifices, some natural, some having had been chewed out by the lions and lionesses, looking for new places to lay their maggots as well as searching for food…_

Naruto was even more shaken up from this test. He felt somewhat weaker, from having mentally and emotionally gone through such excruciating pain. He thought that he was seriously dead! Near the end, he had even forgotten that it was only a genjutsu, that it was not really reality.

The ANBU allowed him to take just as long as he did before, and let him take hue gulps of the icy cold water. Once Naruto's breathing wasn't as erratic, he began once again.

Naruto was standing before a mountain of rocks. He could hear the very faint voice of Hinata calling for help from beneath the rocks, and he knew, even without having to think or ponder it, that he had to get her out. He began throwing rocks to the side carelessly, pulling rock after rock, shoving boulder after boulder to the side, and dodging the fall of the resulting rocks. He felt like he had been working for hours on end, and he was beginning to feel extremely tired.

However, each time he heard Hinata's voice, he felt more and more empowered to help her. He continued pulling away the boulders and rocks, slowly able to work his way towards the voice. He continued pulling the rocks out, even after he felt like he was going to die from the strain. As he pulled away a particularly large boulder, he fell forward, his world going pitch dark from the strain…

Naruto jolted violently in the chair, his hands still making the movements as if he were pulling the rocks out of the pile. "Hinata!" he called out, his voice desperate.

"She's fine. Have some water to clear your head," the ANBU reassured. Naruto nodded anxiously, gripping the cup in both hands and emptying the contents. The ANBU member frowned—that was about the largest cup he could get, and Naruto had already finished it all by himself. And the next test, which was the most elaborate, and the most gruesome, was still yet to come.

The ANBU member quickly sent a Chuunin (who was there to be his assistant and lackey, anyways), to get another glass of the ice water, and he started the last test. To Naruto, that last test would seem, to Naruto, as if it took months.

Naruto was standing in line, a tray in his hands. He was in line behind many, **many** other people, all waiting in line for disgusting-looking slop. Naruto was starving, though he wished desperately for ramen—but **anything** would do.

He was nearly at the front of the line, when he noticed something peculiar—no one was able to leave with the food on his or her trays. He gladly accepted the food from the lunch server, and with a quick **whoosh**, he saw a bird-woman fly away with his food.

"Damn harpies, eh?" a man commented as he threw his empty tray down to the ground.

"Harpies? How are we going to get food?" Naruto asked, shocked and worried. This did not bode well.

"We don't—unless you are willing to trade your soul for it. Then they can't touch you," the man said with a sigh. As if to confirm what he had said, a short woman walked up to one of the wardens and agreed to give up her soul. He took his hand and pushed it deep into the woman's chest, and pulled out a slivery light. The woman fell limp to the ground, now devoid of emotion, personality, hopes, dreams, and will. She quickly and greedily ate the slop that the warden gave her, driven by pure need.

"See?" the man asked, running a hair through his thinning hair. "That'll be me, soon. I can't stand this," he said dejectedly, before walking away from a dumb-folded Naruto. Your **soul** for **food**? It didn't seem like a fair trade at all! But, when Naruto's stomach let out a loud protest, Naruto begrudgingly acknowledged **why** these people would give up their souls for food. A soul isn't worth much if it can't occupy a living body, after all.

Naruto spent day after day, starving himself, yet trying to escape, resisting the urge to give up his soul in return for food. He spent months in that containment center, simply laying their and attempting to break out. He never got close to anyone, because honestly, he knew he would be the only one who would not eventually give up his soul for food. He watched in agony as the harpies continued to steal the food of others, including his own.

Naruto felt so light that it was unhealthy. He felt like he had no weight at all on himself, and it felt as if he was wasting away—which was exactly what he was doing. One day—many months later, for like the text with the lions, it was prolonged, he finally felt himself black out forever…

Naruto jumped, knocking over the chair and the ANBU member. He did not like thinking he was dead, and then awaking, only to find out his was alive and to remember that it all was a test.

"Damn, looks like I don't get any points at all, ne?" Naruto asked, after gulping down the entire 42-ounce cup of water.

"No, no… You get a very high amount of points. Perhaps you missed the reasons?" the ANBU member suggested.

"Huh?" Naruto asked back eloquently, his genius showing definitively throughout each word.

"Well, you always continued to stay steadfast and never gave up—you never showed any weakening will, and you always kept to what you believed was the right course of action. You didn't show any fear in the first trial; you did not given in to the pain, or call out for the test to be stopped; you never stopped when your friend was in danger; and you didn't give your soul up for food," the ANBU member explained.

"In fact, you got a perfect score—you got the highest amounts of points we were willing to award!" the ANBU member exclaimed. "Congratulations, you have been awarded twenty-five points for completely overcoming all of the tests perfectly. You can go home now," the ANBU member said, waving his hand at the blond. Naruto gave him a bright smile before running out of the room, elated that he had passed each tests so well.

----

Naruto was sitting across from Hinata, eating dinner at a barbeque. She had said that it wasn't healthy for him to constantly eat ramen, but barbeque was still really good. They had been talking about training and other aimless things that really, they could always talk about, and they didn't amount to much, anyways.

A silent part in the conversation came, though they had been around each other for long enough to know that it was a comfortable silence. Naruto was picking at his food, thinking about the test he had heard Hinata's voice crying for help. He had yet to describe the tests, and Hinata had yet to ask.

"You were in one of my tests," Naruto suddenly blurted out, still picking at his food.

"Hmm?" Hinata asked, looking up from her own food, intrigued.

"Yeah… I could hear your voice from beneath the pile of rocks, and I had to get you out…" Naruto explained.

"Were you able to get to me?" Hinata asked gently, knowing enough about Naruto to be able to read when he was worried about something. Pressing him would be the only comfortable way for him to get things off of his chest.

"No… I'm sorry… I… couldn't…" he whimpered, his head falling down in shame. Hinata smiled softly and climbed out of her side of the booth and slid in next to Naruto, placing her head against his shoulder.

"Why?" she asked gently.

"Because… I… passed out before I could…"

"Ano, it seems to me that… You weren't meant to save me… Because, if it's Naruto, he would have saved the person… Even if it meant he would have to die…" Hinata explained. "So, I… think that that test was meant to determine something else," Hinata muttered, finishing off her comforting less secure than she had been when she started it.

"… Arigatou, Hinata," Naruto mumbled, turning to Hinata with a bright smile on his face. He wrapped his arms around her neck and back softly, pulling her closer towards his chest. He gently kissed her lips, pressing hard against the soft anatomy. Hinata leaned forward, not wanting the kiss to end just yet. The actions Naruto took were immediate, and simply… happened.

He slid his tongue into her mouth, caressing her tongue gently with his own. She let out a small moan of pleasure as Naruto continued to explore the orifice that he had never taken much notice of before. After all, the idea of making out was completely and utterly revolting—spit mixing with spit, tongue against tongue—but, really, it felt nicer than it sounded.

They broke apart for air, gasping lightly. Hinata's lips were red, puffy, and sore, as were Naruto's. Hinata slowly, as if unsure, pulled Naruto into a kiss, for once, though reluctantly, seemingly taking the dominative position. She slid her tongue into Naruto's mouth slowly, scooting even closer to Naruto. Naruto was now leaning against the window of the store, and Hinata was basically copying Naruto's moves from a few seconds ago, enjoying the feeling of doing it, as opposed to having it done to her.

"Ahem," Shino coughed out, standing next to a broadly smirking Kiba.

"Well, I suppose the two of them forgot we said we were going to meet up with them, eh?" Kiba asked with a laugh, though obviously enjoying both their embarrassment and their progress. Akamaru let out an approving yip.

"It would seem so," Shino commented gently. Though they couldn't see it, Shino was hiding a smile behind his overly large collar. Hinata was a deep red, and for once, Naruto's color could actually rival Hinata's. It wasn't just that Shino and Kiba had caught them, if you could call it being caught, but it was that a dozen of other barbeque patrons were now staring at them.

**A/N: Well, it came, I suppose—in public. Lolol Well, review, pretty please!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

"Okay, now that you and Naruto have started getting _physical_, we need to lay down a few ground rules. Number one is hold off on sex until you are married," Sakura began. Her first rule set Hinata off into a deep blush, already wishing to hide herself away from the snickering of Kiba and Shino. "Number two is that, if you can't wait, you are _not_ doing that in my house, and you are to use protection," Sakura's second rule was even worse than her first, and Hinata was blushing even harder. When was she going to turn on Shino and Kiba, and leave her and Naruto alone? Speaking of Naruto, he was cowering behind Hinata, for the rules seemed to have a somewhat glare pointed at Naruto as well.

"Now, you two," Sakura restarted, _finally_ turning to Kiba and Shino. "I don't care if you have sex. Kiba, you can't get Shino pregnant—it's not physically possible. But if you do anything in front of me or Hinata that will be permanently etched into our brains and make our eyes bleed, I swear, I will have to kill the both of you. Understood?" Sakura's hands were on her hips, and Kiba and Shino looked absolutely _horrified_. For good reason, too—Sakura had a look on her face that plainly stated if she were to be crossed, consequences would be given—and they wouldn't be the peaceful 'go to your room' type of punishment, either. They'd be the 'oh my god, I'm glad I survived with all of my limbs intact' sort of punishment.

The three boys nodded numbly, while Hinata stood there, an immense blush still painted onto her face, frozen.

"Hey, wait a minute. What makes you so sure that _I'd_ be the one… Well, you know," Shino finished in a blush, unsure of how to state it around Hinata. Being around Hinata automatically made things PG—or else Sakura would probably have to chop off your lips. Sakura had grown oddly protective of the gentler, softer girl.

"Let's just say it's a woman's intuition. Besides, you _act_ like the uke, anyways," Sakura finished with a snicker.

"… What's 'uke'?" Hinata asked shyly.

----

After a long (and rather uncomfortable) discussion about seme and uke, and how uke men are usually effeminate, and how the seme men are the ones that 'get to be on top', the group of six (counting Akamaru, of course) began training. Naruto's jutsu was nearing completion—all that he really had left to do was name it. It was a large beam of chakra that he could control like a whip, and it could easily wrap around a tree and burn straight through it.

Hinata made Naruto promise to only use it when he absolutely had to.

In the middle of training, they received a visit from a certain member of Hinata's family—Neji. He muttered a quick greeting to Naruto, Shino, Kiba, and Sakura without even making eye contact, passing by them quickly, obviously headed for Hinata. Naruto gave her a quick yet firm look in which he attempted to tell her that he was there for her, before turning his attention to Neji, in order to watch what he had to say to her. Hinata had caught his look, only because she had been glancing to him for support. She was scared, and frozen in her tracks.

"Hinata-sama, I have a message for you from your father," Neji said formally. Hinata was almost taken aback at how _formal_ and how _serious_ he was acting—he usually at least treated her with some form of causality, considering he was her cousin.

Neji sighed and continued. "The Hokage will be determined in two months. The day after that will be your wedding day—whether it's to an Aburame or an Uzumaki," he informed her. Naruto and Hinata both froze—had the months passed by so quickly? Had the time really already come? They didn't _feel_ ready for such a commitment as marriage—and Hinata was still faintly worried that Naruto was only marrying her to save her from a fate such as marrying her friend.

"I… see. Is that all?" Hinata asked weakly, though other than the weakness, it was toneless, hardly faltering at all, as if nothing mattered, but Neji could see the deep anxiety that had been placed onto Hinata, the emotional and mental load much more than any physical load, in her eyes. They were shying away from him, and looking to the bottom left corner, signifying that she didn't want to hear this information, and that she was already starting to think about how bad it could end up.

"No… Just as a little bit of extra information… Well, you see, I don't want to see Hanabi as head of the clan. You may… I say may because I don't have any proof or anything… You _may_ have a chance of winning the Head title after your marriage. Your father said he wishes to spar with your after your marriage, and he wants to see how much you've grown. If you beat him or something of the like, he may consider making you the Head of the Hyuuga," Neji explained.

Hinata was once again frozen—last time she heard of the title of Head, it had been so set in stone that it would be Hanabi! But now… now she had a choice. But, the problem was, she didn't know what to think of that choice. Did she actually want to be the Head of such a cruel household?

"I'll change the entire Hyuuga!" Naruto cried out in Hinata's memories, a frequently visited memory registering deep within the confines of Hinata's memories. It had warmed her so to see a boy who barely knew her trying to change the entire clan she lived in—and it was then that she had decided that she would do her part to help in changing the Hyuuga, as well.

The words she had heard weren't his exact words—even she knew that. Minds had a funny way of altering and changing memory, turning them from exact memories into facts—and the fact was, Naruto had said he'd help her family—a family he wasn't even a part of.

So, yes, she'd do her best to help her own family. She might as well start from her origins and work her way out, going from one small clan to helping Naruto run the village, helping and supporting him, while simultaneously being helped and supported, as a married couple should.

"I see," Hinata's voice no longer held the weakness it had before—it was much more firm. She had paused for nearly a minute and a half, but the strength and confidence in her actions and words nearly made Neji do a double take to make sure that it was indeed Hinata he had been talking to.

"Enjoy your afternoon, Hinata-sama," he said with a small bow, walking away from the training area, his manner and voice now back to the norm for him. 'How strange for Hinata to suddenly jump from weak to so strong…' Neji mused to himself.

----

"So… your wedding is in only two months, huh?" Sakura asked slowly. They were both sitting together in Sakura's den. Hinata was curled up to herself, her knees touching her chin and her arms wrapped around the middle of her legs in a fetal position. Sakura was lying on her couch, stretched out, staring up at the ceiling.

"Hai…" Hinata muttered, once again, almost weakly.

"… I think we've been concentrating too much on getting Naruto to be able to propose to you, rather than preparing you for it," Sakura said after a length of time, finally sitting up straight. Hinata looked up from her kneecaps, surprised that Sakura was actually offering her relationship advice.

"What… do you mean?" Hinata asked shakily. Her confidence from earlier in regards to the Head position did not carry over to her anxiety towards the wedding. What if she was pushing Naruto too fast?

"I think… That, well, we need to give you two more alone time so that you can actually start to get to the point where living together wouldn't be such a bad idea," Sakura elaborated with a shrug. "Besides, Naruto, at this point, would make a terrible husband," Sakura explained effortlessly. Obviously, the entire time they had been sitting in silence, Sakura had been deep in thought about Hinata's situation.

"Arigatou. Perhaps Naruto and I should spend less time training, and more time alone together," Hinata said, parroting Sakura's words, a slight blush adorning her cheeks.

----

"So, what do you want to do?" Naruto asked. He had listened to Hinata's proposition, and already understanding that she was nervous about it, he decided to make it as easy for her as possible.

"I dunno… Sakura-chan suggested that we should perhaps, just talk…" Hinata explained.

"We talk all the time!" Naruto exclaimed with a bright smile. He wasn't throwing the suggestion in her face—he was simply trying to make it work.

"Ano… We… Well, we talk about training and stuff… But we don't really talk…"

Naruto sighed in defeat. Okay, he'd talk. But talking seemed so… well, okay, maybe it wasn't as bad of an idea as he had originally thought, but it felt like something he did all the time, and that it wouldn't change anything. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Ne, Naruto-kun… How… Ano, how do you feel towards Sasuke?" The question had come effortlessly from Hinata's lips. Sasuke had come back from Orochimaru's lair nearly a year ago—but, really, Sasuke was so withdrawn from normal society, that it was a wonder people even remembered Sasuke.

Naruto's head hung down. Hinata nearly told him that it was alright, that he didn't have to speak, but he started talking before the words could come out. "I… Well, I can't hate him. But… I don't really like him, either. Whenever I'm around him, I… feel kind of like I'm suffocating with anger and anxiety. I haven't talked to him since he came back, you know."

"But… at one time, wasn't he your best friend…?" Hinata asked, the question hanging in the air, causing the conversation to go from tense to tenser.

"At one time," Naruto repeated with a small nod, clarifying the statement Hinata had just made. Did it really have to be Sasuke, of all things, that they talked about?

"I see… I… I think that you should speak to him," Hinata told him after a length of time. Naruto's neck snapped towards her in shock that she had said such a thing. How in the world was he to speak to Sasuke? After all, he… he had betrayed him! And, even then, he had had the gall to come back after Naruto had actually given up on him!

"… When I saw him for the first time after he came back, I greeted him… Well, I tried hugging him, to show him I missed him and all… And he pushed me away coldly, as if I was nothing. As if he seriously hated me," Naruto mumbled, his head once again hanging down, his eyes transfixed on the ground, as if the ground was replaying the memory or helping him to recall the facts.

Hinata placed a gentle hand on top of his, urging him on. Naruto had more pent-up emotions than she had originally thought—she could tell that pain, anger, sadness, loneliness, and even regret were just under the surface of the usually constantly jubilant blue eyes.

"We… we worked so hard to get him back… And… he even called me his… best friend… But… he treated all of us, all of us, as if it didn't matter… Sakura, who had shed so many tears over him… Shikamaru, who had tried so hard… And I… nearly died… How… how am I supposed to talk to him?" Naruto was softly sobbing, his voice becoming a near whimper at the end of his sentence.

"Shh…" Hinata was gently cooing. She had pulled him awkwardly against her chest, patting his head down as if he were a five-year-old. "I think that starting with that… will be sufficient…" Hinata muttered against his hair as she bent down to kiss his head gently.

"Think he'll listen?" Naruto asked slowly, being the most important thing on his mind now.

"If he doesn't want to, you'll make him," Hinata half-joked, though really, there was a lot of truth in the statement.

"Heh, got that right!" Naruto exclaimed, suddenly jumping up happily, though instantly regretting it—Hinata's chest had been soft and warm, and now, laying back on it without her direct consent would make him seem like such… Well, like a chibi version of Jiraiya, really.

"Come on. I'll help you find him," Hinata offered, standing up from the bench and holding out her hand. Naruto quickly took it and pulled himself up, nearly toppling over Hinata, though he managed to catch his balance quickly.

**A/N: Took a while. And I'm not planning on actually typing out the conversation between Sasuke and Naruto. I'm going to have Hinata and Naruto talk about Naruto and Sasuke talking. XD Review, pretty please?**


	12. Chapter 12

**Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure**

It hadn't taken long to find Sasuke, especially with Hinata's Byakugan. As soon as they found Sasuke training—kicking a tree, much like Lee did—Hinata left Naruto to his own devices to talk to Sasuke. The two ex-teammates did have a lot to work out, and, besides, if it was something that she could know, Naruto would tell her.

Naruto stood across from Sasuke, who was simply staring at him, as if seeing through him. "Uzumaki," he greeted informally, having froze mid-training. He knew something was up.

"Cut the crap, Sasuke," Naruto muttered, a glare present on his face.

"I thought we worked out everything when I came back," Sasuke explained. Their version of 'working things out' had been fighting.

"I'm not here to fight, I'm here to talk," Naruto growled.

"Your fists are clenched. The day you can talk to me without fighting is the day that Sakura goes out with Lee," Sasuke muttered, turning back to the tree. He'd have to pretend to be uninterested.

"You never gave me the real reason why you left," Naruto accused.

"I got power, didn't I?" Sasuke asked with a smirk.

"No, you didn't. After Orochimaru died... You lost all of it," Naruto mumbled. "You nearly had some of your life-long comrades killed, and you return with nothing, as if that's all their lives meant."

"That's all any ninja's life means. Maybe not to themselves, or to their loved ones, but really, all a ninja really is is a tool—a weapon used to carry out missions, even if it means their life, just to gain money."

"That's not true. Everybody's life has a value."

"After all these years, you are still naive," Sasuke said, shaking his head gently, chuckling to himself. That comment had most certainly made Naruto angrier.

"What's even more worthless is a ninja who thinks his life is worth nothing," Naruto muttered. He turned around and left a stunned Sasuke behind.

_'He didn't fight me...?'_ Sasuke asked himself in disbelief. Naruto was incapable of just talking. His anger, his emotions ruled him. Why had he suddenly become such a calm—well, maybe calm wasn't the word—person?

_'Ch, Hinata really has done a number on him...'_

----

"I see..." Hinata said from the seat beside Naruto. Their talk hadn't been too successful, in Hinata's opinion. But Naruto was happy because he did it, and Hinata was happy that Naruto was happy. That's all that mattered. After a moment of silence, Hinata turned to Naruto, a strange look on her face—one which Naruto couldn't quite place. It looked... almost devious, if that was possible.

"So, you didn't fight?" Hinata asked for clarification. Naruto nodded and grunted in the affirmative. "Well, then that means today is the today that Sakura-chan goes on a date with Lee!"

Naruto's unbelieving face slowly spread into a smirk, then a smile. Hinata always knew how to cheer him up, definitely. Besides, Sakura had remained lonely for too long.

----

"Eh?" She asked, drawing the simple one-syllable word out. "No way!" Sakura exclaimed, waving her hands back and forth frantically.

"C'mon, Sakura-chan! I'll pay for it!" Naruto exclaimed pleadingly.

"Jeez, what brought this on?" she asked grumpily. Hinata made the connection between her tone and that of Shikamaru—she almost expected her to say 'how troublesome'.

"Well, I was talking to Sasuke..."

"Sasuke?" Sakura repeated softly.

Naruto didn't catch the sadness in her voice. "Yeah! And he said that the day I talked to him without fighting him would be the day that you and Lee go out, and so... And so it didn't sound like a bad idea, see. I mean, you've been all alone, and Hinata-chan and I are spending more time together, and Shino and Kiba are starting to run off more and more..." Naruto's entire conversation sounded like a run-on sentence.

"Fine," Sakura said, stopping him from continuing on with his sentences. "You're getting on my nerves. Besides, it's time I give him a chance," she muttered aloud. "I'll pay for it myself," she muttered gruffly as she walked by Naruto.

Naruto smirked at Hinata, a sort of 'We got 'er' type of look. In the middle of the grin, however, he froze. He then turned back to Hinata, an even more devious look on his face. "We should probably make sure she's doing it, and that they get along well, ne?"

Hinata, if she had been in her right state of mind, would have protested. But, currently, she was too happy about their 'victory' to do anything except nod and say, "Hai!"

----

Naruto was somewhat surprised Sakura actually asked Lee out without any sort of provocation. Naruto, however, knew that Sakura knew that he was watching her—the way her eyes flicked back at Hinata and himself was proof of this. The first time she had even glared at them, annoyed they were following her.

'What made me want to do this, anyways?' Sakura asked herself as she and Lee walked to the restaurant Lee had decided to go to. 'I mean, it's not like I **had** to do this or anything. I don't even really like Lee. I just... Well, I feel kind of like I'm being left behind, somehow...'

Lee came to an abrupt stop, after having talked nonstop for the past few minutes about Sakura, his training, Gai, Sakura again, Neji, his rivalry with Neji, Sakura, and then a brief mention of Tenten.

Sakura twitched at the sight of the restaurant. Of course—it's name was Ka-ka-ka Curry! And, somehow, it fit Lee all too well.

"Shall we?" Lee smiled softly, offering her his arm. Sakura nearly froze at the sight of his smile—she had never seen his smile not be a full out, ear-to-ear grin. 'Is he really happy, or is he faking it when he does the huge smiles...?'

"Uh-huh," she nodded numbly. She could hardly believe it herself—maybe it was from shock—but she felt her knees go weak after he had... coolly offered her his arm.

As they were walking inside, Lee tripped over the step inside. Sakura laughed a little—Lee was still Lee, after all. "Ahh, it must be Lee-san!" she heard a deep, booming male voice call from inside. "How's our best..." the man froze, staring at Sakura.

"Ahh! We're entertaining a lady friend of our Lee-san!" she heard a waitress say. Sakura blushed lightly, and the man from before laughed.

"Ha-ha, it seems so! Finally!" he exclaimed, and motioned Lee towards a booth. "Hear, best seats in the house!"

"Arigatou!' Lee proclaimed loudly, his grip on Sakura's arm becoming tighter. "Oh, ah, this is Sakura Haruno-san," he introduced. "And this is Jiro-san and his wife, Kameko-san."

Sakura waved lightly at the pair while they belted out greetings. She glanced around quickly, and noted that most of the people sitting there were people eating alone, aside from the father and son who were sitting across from each other.

"My, I've seen him come in here with his teacher countless times, his other teammates a few times, but this is the first time he's brought a date," Kameko said, an odd look on her face as she gave Lee a small wink.

'Heh, just like Lee. He makes friends with all the shop owners of the shops he's a regular at, neh? This must be his favorite place...'

Lee slid into a seat in the booth and Sakura slid into the one across from him. Lee turned and called out, "Two regulars please!"

The owner nodded and his wife rushed off into the back room to make the food. "Regulars?" Sakura asked, slightly confused.

"Super-spicy curry," Lee explained with a smile. Sakura was somewhat surprised—she didn't mind spicy food, but she didn't particularly like it, either. Oh, well—she had the ability to eat it, and Lee was paying. But maybe next time she'd forewarn him not to get anything 'super spicy'.

They chatted for a few minutes about their friends and teammates. Lee asked about the status of Hinata and Naruto's relationship, and Sakura explained their position. Lee simply nodded as he listened, and Sakura was kind of happy he was a good listener. The only person she could really speak to was Hinata, and Hinata sometimes didn't understand everything she talked about. For instance, Sakura was sure that Hinata never felt anger that didn't involve Naruto in some shape or form.

"Here's your curry," Kameko said with a quick wink in Lee's direction—a wink so quick that Sakura herself almost didn't catch it. Lee however, ruined this by flashing her a toothy smile and a big thumbs-up.

Lee quickly grabbed his spoon and began eating away at the curry quickly. "Wait, wait!" Sakura commanded gently. Lee paused as soon as he heard the first wait, the spoon halfway up to his mouth. "Why are you eating so quickly?"

Lee blushed and set his spoon down. "Gomen... I, ah, usually eat here in the middle of training... I eat quickly and then rush back to work off the calories and then some..." Lee explained, a light blush adorning his face.

Sakura smiled and shook her head, dismissing his apology. "There's nothing to be sorry for, Lee-kun. Just don't eat so quickly, neh? It's bad for you," she commented before picking up her own spoon , lifting a bite of curry and rice, and bringing it to her mouth.

Whoa. When they said 'super spicy', they didn't mean spicy. They didn't mean hot. They didn't even mean super spicy—they meant hot like a_ volcano_ spicy. Sakura quickly swallowed the bite and gulped down half the glass of water, a stunned Lee watching.

"Is it too hot, Sakura-san?" he asked. She could tell he was kind of sad that she didn't like it.

"Well... I like a little spice, but I don't have the capacity for this..." she motioned to the curry as she said the last word, and Lee looked down in shame.

"Gomen, Sakura-san," he muttered.

"Ah... it's okay, Lee!" she said, waving her hands back and forth.

Suddenly, as if springing from the pits of depression, Lee jumped up and exclaimed, "I know! I'll eat that plate, too, and order you a less spicy one!" He reached for her plate and simultaneously raised his hand. "Ahh, Kameko-san!" he called.

She took the order of the mild curry with a quick nod and a small chuckle, before rushing off to get the order. Lee sat there, staring at Sakura and apologizing over and over, not touching the curry.

"Is something wrong with the curry?" Sakura asked, interrupting his string of apologies with her observation.

"Ah, iie, nothing's wrong. I just don't want to eat while you're waiting for your food."

"It'll get cold."

"I'm fine with cold."

Sakura knew that Lee was polite, possibly even overly polite, but she never knew that his politeness was coming straight from genuine kindness and concern for others. She was touched that he would think about her, even with two plates of his favorite food growing cold in front of him.

_'Sasuke... Iie, no other guy... would be this nice to me,'_ she thought to herself, smiling inwardly at Lee's kindness at his own expense.

The mild curry soon arrived, as Kameko really did put a rush on getting food for her favorite customers, and Lee and Sakura began eating and chatting. Lee, even with Sakura's warnings, finished both plates of curry just as Sakura was finishing her first.

They continued talking, even after they finished eating and Kameko accepted the money from Lee. Sakura had offered to pay her half, included the plate of curry that she couldn't eat, but Lee adamantly refused to let her even pay the tip. Lee paid it in full, and even gave Kameko a ten-dollar tip—a tip that was grossly overpaid.

"Hey, Lee, what do you spend your money from missions on?" Lee's missions lately had all been B- or A-rank, and he had completed nearly all of them correctly. And you got paid a lot for one of those missions—and if they were only one day missions, then you were really raking in money. Most ninja got more money than they could really spend in the time they were home.

"Food. Basic bills. Necessities," Lee said with a shrug. It was true—Lee never spent it on anything he didn't deem unnecessary. In fact, he probably had a lot of money in his bank account, of which wouldn't be paid. "But, you do the same thing," he pointed out with a small smirk.

"Huh?"

"You spend most of your time at the hospital, helping people. They pay medic-nin a lot, ne, Sakura-san?" Lee's question had been more of a statement.

"Yeah, but I'm not risking my life for money that I'm not spending..." she mused aloud. "It's mainly the helping people that makes me spend a lot of time there."

"Sorry to disturb you and your date," here Jiro added a husky wink, "But we have to close the shop," he pointed to the clock, which read, unbelievingly, nearly 10:00. It had been about 7:30 when they came into the store, and they had finished eating by 8:45 (taking in account the time it took to make both sets of curry).

"Ah, it's already this late! I must escort you home!"

"I live in my own apartment with Hinata," she explained, just to assure him that angry parents wouldn't be yelling at him—not that, if she had been living with her parents, the curfew would be as low as ten o'clock. It had been midnight when she had lived with them before, and even then, they didn't enforce it.

"I... I wasn't suggesting that at all!" Lee exclaimed nervously, beet red, waving his hands back and forth. He did not want to mistaken for a pervert, of all things!

"Lee-kun, you're silly," she chuckled. "I meant you don't have to worry about my parents yelling at you."

"Oh. I see. Well, then let's go," he said, a lighter blush adorning his face.

_'Huh... I actually fell for him...'_ she thought to herself. As they stood, and walked beside each other, their butts sweating from the leather of the booths, Sakura wrapped her hand around Lee's much larger one and leaned against him.

Lee smiled brightly and felt his heart pounding loudly, as if wanting escape from his chest. He gave her hand a soft squeeze as they walked out of the door, Lee just barely remembering to hold the door open for them. They exchanged farewells to Kameko and Jiro halfheartedly, not paying much attention to the older couple.

Meanwhile, outside, nearly the back of the restaurant, Hinata and Naruto jumped for joy as they watched the newly-formed couple walking out of the restaurant, hand-in-hand.


End file.
